


Love Lies

by LightBlueFlower



Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Music, Drug Abuse, Drug Use, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Explicit Sexual Content, Implied Sexual Content, M/M, Maybe - Freeform, Music
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-02-23
Updated: 2018-12-25
Packaged: 2019-03-22 20:44:01
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 31,153
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13772181
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LightBlueFlower/pseuds/LightBlueFlower
Summary: Arthur Kirkland, known publicly as KING, is one of the most successful producers and DJ in the world, dominating the EDM scene after his first year of going mainstream. Unfortunately for him, the French DJ and professional womanizer, Jean Épine, also broke out at the same time. After a disasterous introduction and Jean being proclaimed as the world's #1 DJ that year, Arthur made it his mission to beat Jean at all the awards and become the real number one DJ in the world.This all changes when, a few years later, after managing to keep the top two positions to themselves, 19 year old newcomer Lars Jensen rocked the scene by becoming the youngest DJ to win the number one title.Not wanting to disappear from the public eye and wanting to stay relevant, Arthur and Jean decide to do something that they thought would never happen in their entire career.





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Hey everyone! So, if you follow me on tumblr (@lightblue-flower), you would know that I had an idea a while back for a DJ AU with FrUk as the titular relationship. I know I have some other stories to write, but now that I'm a bit 'older', I wanted to branch beyond high school aus, so this would be a good way for me to explore more, I guess, outside of high school things.
> 
> Hopefully you guys would stick around for this story- it will not be as long as the other ones I wrote, but it will be multichaptered and the chapters will be long, because I don't want this story to drag on.
> 
> Characters:  
> Arthur Kirkland/KING - England  
> Francis Bonnefoy/ Jean Épine- France  
> Mei Xiao - Taiwan  
> Camille Bonnefoy - Monaco  
> Matthias - Denmark  
> Tino - Finland  
> Berwald - Sweden  
> Lukas/ LUK∀S - Norway  
> Eduard Von Bock - Estonia  
> Raivis - Latvia  
> Toris - Lithuania  
> João Santos - Portugal
> 
> Without further ado, thank you so much for giving this story a chance, I hit the post button too soon but I will update the summary and the chapter for any mistakes, and I hope you enjoy!

_Click, click, click, click, click, click!_

“King! Over here!”

_Click, click, click, click, click, click!_

“Smile for me, KING!”

The man was absolutely awestruck at his surroundings. The sudden flashes of the cameras lined up behind the barricade nearly blinded him as he stood on the carpet, trying his best not to squint too much as to not stupid in the photo.

The man was currently in Festhalle Frankfurt, the huge arena located in Frankfurt, Germany, where he was attending the MTV Europe Music Awards. See, this man was no ordinary man- he is now one of the new names in the DJ and music producer scene internationally so far, and his popularity is on the rise.

After meticulously and slowly doing DJ gigs from small bars to getting signed by _Braginsky Entertainment_ (a small yet well connected management group) to doing EDM concerts in the biggest arenas all across Europe, the man was able make his big break at the beginning of summer that year with the release of his EP _Runaway_ , with the titular track breaking through to mainstream. He didn’t expect that the success with _Runaway_ would be as huge as it did, but it landed him nominations after nominations, and after actually winning Teens Choice Awards for best EDM Song, placing 20th on the DJMag 100 list, he went on to winning Best Breakthrough DJ from the DJ Awards in Ibiza.

Things were looking up for this man, and even though this was his first attending these sorts of events, he was sure that he would be at least in the top 10 in the 100 list next year.

“Arthur, come over here right now,” he heard a woman beckon from the side, a bit further back in order to allow other singers and attendees to pass them. Arthur sighed, as he trailed away towards a short woman with long brown hair, who was extending her tanned arms out towards his neck. “How did you manage to loosen your tie again!”

“Why do I have to wear this stuffy suit, huh Mei? I didn’t have to wear this at the DJ Awards…”

“Because no photographers were allowed there,” Mei whispered sharply, her eyebrows pulled into a slight frown, though due to her voice having a high and sweet sound to it, it didn’t sound as threatening as she would have liked it to be. “If you keep up this good image when you go to events, you’ll be taken more seriously by potential collaborators and artists, which will help you kickstart your new album next year.”

“We just finished the tour and we’re already talking about another EP…”

“This is what you were working towards Arthur! Producing your own music! And thanks to that mix, you now have to opportunity to make your way up to the top 10! That would only make your base bigger and get your more deals!”

What started as a hobby one afternoon when he was 20 in order to escape the dread of his everyday minimum-wage life in his small, cramped apartment his family of five shared, soon turn into a skyrocketing musical career ever since he started to upload mixes online. Arthur was originally in an indie rock band as a guitarist and backup vocals from secondary school until then, who did relatively well in the U.K., however, since their disbandment he had no idea what he was going to do with his life. He didn’t want to go to university - something his parents wanted him to do- and he wanted to keep making music.

“Now, smile,” Mei said smoothly, her glossed lips turning up as a smile, as she mindlessly brushed Arthur’s shoulder. Arthur gave a smile, knowing that she was only thinking about what’s best for him - Mei was his manager since the day he signed on to the label, after all.

Although at first, most people at the agency were hesitant to sign an inexperienced person on (at the age of 22, Arthur only performed in clubs and had few mixes to present), Mei felt that he could make it big, and immediately extended her help to Arthur. Arthur knew his hard work and endless hours poured into producing was what helped him on his way to success, though he admits that he’s as big as he is now because he had Mei by his side, along with his agent and publicist, Yao Wang, who unfortunately couldn’t make it (or so he claims...Arthur knows he’s having another rendezvous with the CEO’s son).

It’s only been almost 1 year since he signed on, and he somehow managed to make his big break from a small record company. This kind of thing wasn’t unusual, but for someone to have such little experience before entering the industry, this was a pretty amazing feat.

Arthur strode down the red carpet, looking up and standing on one spot for photographers to take photos of him. Both hands in his pockets, he stood up straight and flashed a smile. He may not be the most attractive man attending the event, but he knew that his somewhat boyish, punkish charm is what wins the media’s heart. It clashes with the way he talks- with a delightful London accent that doesn’t sound too posh or too much like a chav- which gave him a somewhat gentlemanly air.

He eventually walked down the carpet, where he can hear the screams of the public being held behind the silver rails, and additional bodyguards holding some of the girls who were trying to lean over to touch the people that pass. Some could be heard slightly saying his stage name, but Arthur was still unsure how to handle fans, so he walked down to the area where the interviewers were standing, busily trying to interview as many of the attendees as they can.

“Hey, King! If it isn’t everyone’s favourite new DJ, how’s it going man?” Arthur was called over by a tall, young man with a dirty blond undercut, and a very who he recognized immediately as one of the most popular music reporter for the magazine _Weekly Entertainment:_ Eduard Von Bock. Arthur has done a previous interview with him about his album in one of their issues (Mei knew Eduard personally, and was able to get him to interview Arthur) and the two encountered the other more during the festivals and events Arthur attended over the course of the year.

Edward was a decent man and was very level-headed, but the moment the camera is on he becomes the talkative, confident, and vibrant guy the internet loves to watch. He also tends to contribute to the magazine’s many gossipy articles claiming it was from ‘an anonymous source’, but everyone in the music industry knows that he’s the source and finds information first hand. Eduard has a way with words, and he could easily analyze whatever you say and find a hidden meaning behind your facial expressions- he knows just the right times to press on with questions.

Even though Mei trusts Eduard not to harass Arthur, Yao coached him on what to do when the press tries to badger you with personal questions- he especially made sure Arthur was prepared for Eduard’s questions, making him watch a few of his interviews and pointing out how to counter most of his questions.

“It’s been a while Eduard- I’m loving the white,” Arthur replied lightly as he approached the man, who was wearing a white suit black lapels and tie. He definitely stood out from the rest of the reporters. Arthur has seen him when he would be lounging around at his flat one time when Arthur tagged along with Mei as she tried to squeeze some intel about other potential competitors from Eduard. Eduard was mild with his outfits at home, with dark earthy hues as his usual palette- but that wouldn’t match his online character, and so he would wear these bright colours in order to grab the stars’ attention and to get an interview with them before anyone else.

“Thanks, it brings out my eyes!” Eduard smiled brightly as Arthur approached, shifting the microphone to his left hand and reaching out to shake Arthur’s hand with the other. “Good to see you, man, you’re looking quite snazzy with that suit. I didn’t think you'd be the type to wear something like this outfit- you always wear jeans and shirts to your shows!”

“Well, this is the biggest music awards in Europe and I wanted to as good and fancy as everyone else. Of course, I don’t look as handsome as you Eduard,” Arthur quipped back. “You need to give the rest of us a chance, you know!”

“Always with the compliments Arthur; save it for the ladies,” Eduard replied with a cheeky grin. “I was just taking a break from the interviews and I’m starting it up again- it would be awesome to get an interview with one of the best DJs in the world so far.”

“I wouldn’t say I’m the best DJ,” Arthur laughed his comment off, wanting to appear humble. He can’t let his sudden success get into his head early on- he especially doesn’t want to give Eduard’s any reason to claim him to be arrogant and egotistical.

“Alright,  we’ll be going live soon, so get ready. Raivis, you steady the camera! Toris, how’s the audio?”

“Yessir!” The small man holding the camera said quickly, looking nervously as he fumbled to hold the camera over his shoulder, as another taller man handled a little pad and headphones, fidgeting with a metallic square.

“You’re going live, Eduard, in 3, 2,” the taller man said, mouthing ‘1’, and Eduard immediately had a much clearer and louder voice. “Ladies and gents, we are back live from the MTV European Awards, standing on the red carpet, and I am currently joined by King, who is one of the most talked about DJs in the world. King, how do you feel being here in Frankfurt tonight?”

“Well, Eduard, I am very happy and grateful that I was able to have the opportunity to attend this award show- this is my first time at anything like this, and it’s really exciting being able to actually witness everything as it happens,” Arthur said cooly into the mic, give a small smile. “Everything is just so new to me, and I can’t wait to watch all the live performances.”

“That’s right, this is your first time attending the EMAs, and this year uou really boosted your popularity with the release of your song “Runaway” during the summer, allowing you to attends these sort of popular events. Not only is this your first year attending this sort of thing, but you’re also nominated for two awards- for both Best Electronic Artist and Best New Act award. Tell me, how do you feel being nominated in two categories during your first year attending this show?”

“Well, it’s certainly a lot of anticipation and pressure, because in Best Electronic Artist, I’m against veteran DJs who are amazing, and as a newer DJ I’m just happy being in the same category as they are.”

“Ah, but you’re also against newcomer Jean Épine for both awards. How do you feel having to compete against him again for Best New Act after winning Best Breakthrough Artist in Ibiza? Do you think you have a chance of winning again?”

 _This little shit starter_ , Arthur thought as he gritted his teeth upon hearing that name, and he could see Eduard’s eyes twinkle behind his glasses, ready for Arthur to say something.

“Look, we’re both here because we love to produce music and I think Jean Épine makes good music, but I don’t really care about winning the awards. It’s all about making the music and experiencing the journey,” Arthur replied, as Eduard did his usual end of the interview laugh and smile.

“Alright, well, thank you for talking with us King, we hope to see you on the stage!” With that, Eduard looked at the camera, a sign for Arthur to walk down the red carpet.

Arthur continued along while being stopped here and there for an interview from other magazines and entertainment channels. As it was approaching the start of the main event, Arthur found his way to his spot at the nosebleeds section reserved for artists, special guests, and participants in the award show. As he trailed along the railings, he managed to thread his way through the myriad of people standing around. He gave a quick hi to some familiar faces that came up to him and introduced themselves.

He didn’t make friends as easily as he should have, so he was grateful that people were mostly approaching him rather than the other way around.

“Well, well. If it isn’t the King himself!” Arthur turned around to the source of the voice, and immediately knew who it was from the high tone to the Danish accent. There were three men sitting around a table, all wearing casual, yet stylish, clothing, and Arthur felt a bit more relaxed seeing them. 

“I thought all of you were performing tonight. I was looking forward to Matthias’ singing!”

“You know you love my voice,” the one with his long yellow-blond hair pulled into a bit of spike replied - that being Matthias. His eyes crinkled slightly as he smirked, “If you bothered to read the itinerary, you’d know whether we’re performing or not.”

“I was too busy to read it- besides, it would be a nice surprise to watch without knowing who's performing” Arthur waved him off as he exchanged a quick handshake and hug with Matthia, happy to see him after a long while. He turned to the other two- one who was shorter than the other two with short, blond hair and the other one with shorter hair and glasses-, and did the same. “Tino, Berwald, it’s good to you lads. How was your tour?”

“Hm.” Berwald, the tall one with the glasses, nodded, while Tino laughed.

“We’re still really tired from it, but we didn’t want to miss the chance of hanging out with you and Lukas,” Tino said, his voice light with a Finnish accent. “It’s been too long since we’ve partied together!”

“Where is Lukas anyways? I didn’t see him when I was walking down the carpet?” Arthur asked, as Matthias allowed Arthur to slip between him and Tinos to sit down on the couch. “Is he also going to perform?”

“I texted him and he said he just arrived,”, Matthias replied, glancing over to his phone. “Though I don’t remember if he’s going to be performing right now.”

“No, he’s just going to be hosting until the Best Electronic Act portion in the middle of the night,” Tino replied, pulling his eyebrows down slightly, as if thinking. “And we’re presenting right after Jean Épine’s performance.”

Arthur pulled his lips in when he heard that name again.

“Jean Épine?” Berwald repeated with a monotone voice, before pausing momentarily. “...Who’s that.”

“Seriously Berwald! You’ve heard his track _‘X and O’_ before, it was playing on the radio on our way here!” Matthias laughed.

“Your head’s always up in the clouds,” Tino sighed, taking a sip from the drink he had in his hand. "It's a miracle you remember what to do whenever we play a set."

“That guy’s doing pretty good isn’t he? He’s already gotten an award at the VMA for that single,” Matthias replied. “Along with NRJ’s Best Single and Song of the Summer…”

 _The NRJ Awards are bias towards French DJs though_ , Arthur scoffed in his head, remembering Yao’s words about holding his tongue from saying anything about an award he could potentially win in the future.

“That’s crazy good compared to our first year in mainstream,” Matthias sighed, turning his face slightly up as he leaned back into the couch, a hand running through his blonde hair. “You and Jean are killing it on the charts. I’m kind of jealous...

“You two are already got nominated for both Best Electronic Artist Category and Best New Act!” Tino said cheerfully, in order to show support. “I’m sure one of you would win!”

“Hey, you guys are nominated for Electronic Artist too! You guys might have a better chance than me,” Arthur waved Tino’s comment politely with a kind smile, although he felt his ego boost by two folds.

Jean Épine...that’s all he’s been hearing about ever since his song started to climb up the charts.

One of the most talked about DJs in the world at the moment, Jean Épine is a French DJ that made his breakthrough that year with his hit song _‘X and O’_ featuring one of the biggest pop singers in the world, RiRi. From what Arthur knew about him, he had been in the Parisian club scene much longer than Arthur, but only turned to producing songs that year, with much success from having a decent following from his mixes. Other than that, he didn’t know anything other than what he saw on magazines.

It’s true what Mathias said thought- both him and Jean Épine broke out into the mainstream around the same time, and rather than either of them one upping each other, their popularity skyrocketed at the same time.

Matthias, Tino, and Berwald all belong to the Scandinavian DJ group called The Aftermath- a name that they carried with them for the past three years since they started to make songs that were a hit with the public. Though, their first song didn’t nearly do as good as either _Runaway_ or _X and O._

Arthur never directly encountered Jean surprisingly- he only ever attended music festivals that year instead or reward show. Even so, Arthur knew he didn’t like the French DJ the moment he saw Jean Epine’s face on the cover of Weekly Entertainment. He was a man that was a few years older than Arthur, with long blond hair that he didn’t bother to tie back, with a light stubble along his jaw and chin, and small, yet beautiful blue eyes that were enclosed with long lashes. He had a smirk on his face that Arthur read as Jean saying, “ _Yeah, I know I’m hot, what are you gonna do about it?”_ He wore a white and black style shirt with a blue jacket, and he had rings adorned on his fingers, along with a single gold chain tucked into his shirt. His black jeans were too tight for Arthur’s taste, and he wore very expensive trainers that must have been Christian Dior. Jean exudes sex appeal in his cover photo, and even more in the small photoshoot in the magazine itself

Arthur immediately did not like Jean. There was something about him the oozes narcissism, overconfidence, and arrogance. It didn’t help that Arthur had a feeling he was one of those rich kids that grew up with all the luxury in the world that this producing thing was just for fun, and he probably doesn’t even produce his own stuff.

Despite this subtle hatred from Arthur’s part, there was no rivalry between them, though, exemplified by Eduard’s interview, the media sort of attempted to make it seem like there could have one. They are never seen talking to each other, but really, that's because they never had the opportunity to.

Mei wants to introduce Arthur to Jean after this awards show though- Jean will be performing and attending The Aftermath’s after party that’s mostly for producers and DJs, and she wants them to be acquainted as soon as they can, much to Arthur’s dismay. Luckily, he hasn’t yet run into him yet, but he knows that he’ll have to see his stupid French face when he performs.

 _It won’t hurt to meet him_ , Arthur though, as the light started to go down, and the entire stadium went silent for a moment. _Maybe we can even collaborate on a project._

The event started immediately, with the fans who attended the show in the front of the stage screaming when the first act went on. Arthur wasn't prepared for all the excitement that he felt - it was much different being there than watching it through a tv screen. It was even more so exciting when he was one of the people that others scream and get excited about- this is how fame must feel like. Being the centre of attention for others and being the object of envy to many.

As the night progressed, their friend Lukas appeared on the stage. Arthur was, needless to say, impressed with how clean cut Lukas looked in his little navy blue suit and his wheat blond hair being brushed back to show his baby blues. He still didn’t forget to wear his iconic silver cross clip in his hair, but he made it work with the rest of the outfit.

Lukas was a Norwegian DJ Arthur met through Matthias and his group. His stage name was simply his name stylized as LUK∀S- he was one of the lucky few who could use their actual name and make it sound cool enough to put on an album cover.

Imagine if Arthur put his name on an album- he doubts people would be interested in buying songs from a guy named Arthur Kirkland. That’s too posh and uptight of a name that didn’t scream ‘ _I’m cool, I like to stay out late partying and drinking until I pass out!_ ’

Lukas presented a few awards alongside a well-known singer while giving a bit of a spiel for each of them. Finally, he said,

“And now I’ll be presenting this award before we get back into the performances. The Best Electronic Music Act!” People for the audience cheered as Lukas picked up a thin, metallic black envelope from the side of the stage, as the screen behind them lit up with a blue, pink, and yellow geometrical formation, and the pre-made video with all the artists that are nominated for the award appeared.

“ _Best Electronic Music Act,_ ” A women’s voice said from the video, as she started to list the contestants. There were five people nominated per category, and usually a snippet of their most popular music video of the year played with their names in the screen. “ _...The Aftermath...Jean Épine...KING_.”

Arthur felt goosebumps on his arms as he saw his face appear from the music video for _Runaway_ , and felt a mixture of nervousness and excitement well up in his chest. Despite what he thinks, he knows that he has a good chance of winning both awards tonights. He can’t wait to add this award to his list… it would be amazing if he managed to win all these awards in his first year.

“And the winner is…” The girl beside Lukas started, as she opened the envelope, before turning it around. In that millisecond, Arthur was ready to hear that one word, when he saw Lukas lean into the mic.

“Jean Épine!”

Screams and cheers could be heard as the stage lit a bit brighter shade of blue, and Arthur could the cameras attached around the placed shift over to the main catwalk to the stage. He could hear Matthias wolf whistle, and Arthur forced himself to clap as a vague disappointment washed over him, but it was nothing too serious.

Jean Épine walked down the aisle, wearing a casual grey jacket with a long black shirt, and pants to suit it. He wasn’t as dressed up as Arthur, but he still looked good in what he was wearing- again, with the stupid rings and the chain kept hidden, and his long golden locks were pulled back into a low ponytail. He managed to look like he was walking out of a fashion catalogue, even while wearing the most ridiculous thing ever.

His song played in the background as he accepted the award, and he smiled that sweet smile. Arthur could hear most of the girls scream and swoon as he winked at a few near the stage. He shook hands and hugged both Lukas and the girl, before taking the award in his hand and the mic.

“Um, sorry if I don’t say this right,” Jean started, and Arthur realised for the first time that he actually never heard the man speak. Ever.

There was something seductive and romantic about his voice- the tone wasn’t too deep, but not too high. He had this weird fluidity, and his French accent, although thick, had this weird charm to it. There was a bit of a rasp to his voice, but it could be because of how he pronounced his ‘r’ in that French way.

“Thank you to all my fans for supporting my work,” Jean continued a bit slow, as if he was being careful with what he said. Arthur knew then and there that this must have been the first time Jean was speaking English publicly.

He grew up in London - a very multicultural city in its own rights. There’s a thing most people do when they learn a new language where they look like their thinking about what to say and making sure not to say it in their own language- and that’s exactly what Jean was doing at the moment. “Et uhh, to my beautiful manager, Camille, for helping me with the album and supporting me with the making of it. I couldn’t have done it without you. Thank you Record Spinning for allowing to continue to make music that I love, and thank you MTV for the award!”

Of course, more screams, and Arthur can tell that the girls must have been swooning over how cute he was for how careful and slow he was, and how charming his stupid French accent was. None of which Arthur found nice on him. If it were others, he would have been fine with, but there was something about watching Jean talk and the fans screaming that's really…

  _Annoying_ , Arthur thought trying so hard not to make any obvious annoyed faces, know that if the camera happened to zoom in on him, there’s going to be another supposed beef between him and Jean. And he was not ready to get into any celeb fights.

Not this soon anyways.

 It was perfect ‘coincidence’ that Jean was performing soon after this award, because a good few minutes after Matthias, Tino, and Berwald left to go backstage to prepare for their performance, Jean Epine came back out on the stage to present his song with RiRi. The stage was set with a small disk jockey, as the lights started to dance to the beat of the music, and the singer, RiRi, came out looking as much of a fashion icon as she can. The crowd was completely hyped, and Arthur tried to enjoy it, but he was cringing at the excessive use of electronic sound to the song.

Arthur tended to be the type to merge a bit of piano and guitar into his piece instead of relying heavily on whatever Guitar Band rehash that every DJ abuses - hence why he doesn’t actively listen to Jean’s music in the first place.

The Aftermath went on soon after, and as the night rolled on, Arthur was caught up with all the amazing performances that he was disappointed when the show ended. But he knew the night has not quite over.

“Let’s have another drink!” Matthias exclaimed, as the cork from the champagne he held in his hands catapulted up to the dimly lit roof of the limousine they were in. Along with Lukas, Arthur had joined his mates to go to one of the after parties in Frankfurt- more specifically, the one The Aftermath was in charge of, but they were running a bit late thanks to Matthias’ Snapchat spree he did at the end of the event.

 Arthur texted Mei, who was waiting inside the club and trusted him to get there in one piece.

  _Remember, don’t drink before you get here!_ Mei had texted him, and Arthur consciously knew that he shouldn’t accept the glass Matthias was handing him, but his subconscious said he deserves to party after being stuck in the studio for so long and touring around Europe during the summer without properly partying.

 _One little drink won’t hurt,_ Arthur thought, taking a small sip from the glass, laughing along with the others as Matthias drunkenly sang along the pop songs that came on the radio.

Mattias had to get Berwald to help him out of the limousine, as Tino and Lukas trailed along with Arthur, who was a bit tipsy on his feet as he walked up the stairs to the the black, metallic doorway. The moment he stepped in, the music was blaring, and the ground felt like it was shaking, but it must have been Arthur’s imagination. He couldn’t see much through the light fog that clung in the air, but he managed to make his way to the top floor with the others to were all the couches and tables were.

He managed to spot Mei near the little bar on the side and started to make his way over. As he approached Mei, he saw that she was talking to a young woman who was slightly taller than her, with peach skin and long blonde hair that was tied back in a French braid. She was definitely pretty, but she had a cold air to her, and her resting face didn’t help.

“King!” Mei exclaimed loud enough for him to hear, as he pulled Arthur into a gentle hug. “I want to introduce you to Camille Bonnefoy. She’s a manager at Record Spinning!”

“Nice to meet you, Ms. Bonnefoy,” Arthur courtly replied, reaching out his hand and shaking hers.

“Please, call me Camille,” the woman replied, and Arthur noted her slight French accent. She reminded him of someone - from the clear blue eyes to the dark blond hair-, but he wasn’t sure of whom...

“She’s Jean Epine’s manager,” Mei said to Arthur before he can open his mouth, and a sudden dread swept over him, the swirling around him intensifying. He really shouldn’t have drunk before coming here...did Matthias put something else in his drink? Or did he drink more than one glass?

“Well, you must be proud of his win tonight,” Arthur said, before muttering, “and of his subpar act.” Mei immediately pinched his back so he would straighten up and watch what he said, but luckily for her, Camille didn’t hear anything.

“Yes, he’s really surprised that he managed to win amongst all the other artists! But he worked really hard on his EP,” Camille smiled kindly. “I must say, King, I am a big fan of your EP as well. I wish I brought my copy for you to sign!”

 _She knows how to flatter you,_ Arthur though, though he didn’t mind that at all. At least someone is showing him a bit of love. Mei was good at that too- flattering other artists. It must come with being a manager. “I’ll be sure to send you one with my autograph.”

“Camille and I were talking about a possible collaboration between you and Jean Epine,” Mei started, as she took her glass of Sangria from the countertop. “But we wanted you two to meet.”

“Now, where is that guy- Jean?” Camille exclaimed into the crowd of other people, looking around, until she looked behind her, and sighed. “Always with the models... _Jean vien ici!”_

Arthur looked passed Camille, and lo and behold, Jean Epine was at a couch nearby, surrounded by a bunch of female models who had managed to make it on the invite list. He could see that the Frenchman was chattering away, and his hand gestures made it seem like he was flirting- a few of their smiles and laughter confirmed that he was, indeed, flirting.

When Camille called him over, Jean looked up. He didn’t make any sign of agitation, and instead stood up with a smile, told the girls something, gave another wink, and waltzed over to bar where the group was standing.

“ _Je veut t’introduire a Mei Xiao et KING,_ <I want to introduce you to Mei Xiao and KING,>” Camille said in French, and Arthur was slightly confused as to why. Thankfully he paid a bit of attention to French class from high school, but he knew Mei didn’t know a lick of French to save her in the streets of Paris. “ _Il est le nouveau DJ de Londres dont tout le monde parle. <_He’s the new London DJ everyone is talking about.>”

Jean looked up to Arthur, and Arthur sort of froze on the spot. There was something completely different when you looked at him in person, and it was completely different looking him in the eye rather than through a magazine cover. Jean was slightly taller than Arthur, and he could see that he's more fit thank lanky as he remembers him to be. Arthur felt his heartbeat slightly, and he remained even more entranced when Jean broke into a warm smile and reached out for his hand. “Hello, nice to meet you.”

“You too,” Arthur quickly mumbled, not wanting to look like a baffoon, and shook his hand quickly. “You had a good performance tonight, and congratulations on winning your award.”

He heard Camille quickly translate exactly what Arthur said in French, and Jean nodded along, not breaking eye contact with him.

“Thank you,” Jean replied, and there was something about it that sounded incredibly sincere. But that vanished as soon as Jean let go, and he looked at Mei - and then that arrogant clint in his eyes returned, and his had more of a flirtatious smirk.

“ _Et_ _vous aussi, mademoiselle,_ ” he said and his voice turned smooth and low, taking Mei’s hand and planting a kiss.

Arthur was back to not liking Jean.

“Oh, oh, merci,” Mei said quickly with the only few French words she knew, a flustered look on her face, and she giggled like an idiot. Arthur was gravely disappointed with his manager- not even she can control herself around this man.

“ _Je savais pas que les femmes de Londres sont si belle_ ,” he continued to Mei, who had no idea what he was saying, but Arthur knows what ‘femme’ and ‘belle’ means and put two and two together.

“ _Elle n’est pas_ interested,” Arthur suddenly mumbled close to Jean, knowing that he spoke some serious Franglish at that moment, but he just wanted him to get out of Mei’s face.

Jean laughed at what Arthur said, and leaned back, his smirk not leaving his face and pissing Arthur off greatly.

“Okay you two, me and Mei are going to go and talk some more business stuff, so have fun,” Camille said, and repeated it in French, before looping her arm around Mei’s, to escort her out of the area.

“Yao said he can pick you up and take you home,” Mei said before she started to walk away. “Make sure to call him! Have fun!”

“I will!” Arthur replied back as he watched Mei start to go down the staircases to the main floor.

Now it was just him and Jean Épine. No Mei. No Camille. And now that whatever he had in the limousine started to overtake his system, Arthur has no filter.

“Do you always flirt with any women or is that just a thing you French men do?” Arthur slurred as he leaned on the counter. Jean looked at him, and there was an expression of amusement on his face.

“Pardon?” Jean asked, as Arthur huffed.

“Right...you don’t understand English much, do you?” Arthur replied, a bit more clearer for him to hear him properly. Jean looked at him for a moment, thinking.

“I understand...but it’s harder to speak,” Jean replied, his silky smooth voice still sounding nice even when he’s struggling to talk. “I know more now than when I was...petit.”

“I thought they taught English in French schools?”

“Yes, but I didn’t need to learn it,” Jean continued, his voice a bit more sure, before his smirk returned. “Plenty of women don’t mind me speaking French.”

“So you’re that type, huh,” Arthur mumbled, glancing over at the table. One of the models was getting up and coming towards them. He then felt a bit annoyed and wanted to be a bit of a douche to him. “Did you get into DJing because you knew fame came with all the models and sex in the world?”

To this, Jean laughed. Then, it the clearest and most confident voice, “Well, at least one of us gets to experience it.”

Now Arthur knew that he did not like Jean at all.

The model that came up to them hooked her arm around Jean, saying, “Come on, let’s dance!”

“Oui,” Jean replied, and spoke a bit more of French.

Jean Epine turned around as a model dragged him along past Arthur, and he glanced back at the Brit...only to give him that same stupid smirk he used on that magazine cover. Except now, Arthur read it additionally as _“I know I’m hot, everyone wants me, and I’m the shit, what are you going to do about it?”_

“See you around, little king,” he could hear him say, a bit of a teasing tone in his voice, and Arthur gritted his teeth.

 _What an ass!_ Arthur thought, wanting so bad to call him out, but he disappeared amongst the many other people in the club with them.

At that moment, Arthur swore he was going to be a better producer than motherfucking Jean Epine. He’ll even be number one next year on the DJMag Top 100!

 _Watch out Jean Épine,_ Arthur scoffed, before hearing Matthias calling him over from the bar. _I’ll make you regret making a fool out of me..._

* * *

 

Mei wasn't lying when she said that Arthur would be able to release a new album and have more collaborations with popular artists in the coming year.

After the EMAs, the young Brit was getting calls from all various singers (that he, unbeknownst to them, was a fan of) wanting him to produce songs for them and for him to release remixes of their songs.

And of course, Mei immediately accepted most of the requests that came, wanting Arthur to be able to launch a new album that coming year so that he could win this year’s title of number one DJ in the world at the DJ Magazine Top 100.

Even though Arthur didn’t win any of the awards, winning an award from MTV wasn’t exactly a DJs number one goal. And surprisingly, a winning a Grammy is not something that most people in the EDM scene would prioritize (even though it would be a big deal to win one). Everyone knows that there are two important events that really helps determines one's success in the industry: the first is being invited to the DJ Awards in Ibiza and winning a title from one of their categories. Last year, Arthur was able to secure a title of Best Newcomer, which really helped his brand and helping him get booked to more festivals and events than he previously had when he was still working up the ranks. If he doesn’t win an award that year there, it would be the fact that he was invited to such an exclusive event that would really help him connect with other exclusive producers.

The second event is the DJ Magazine Top 100 Awards that occurs yearly in the fall at the Amsterdam Music Festival - one of the biggest festivals in Europe (and even in the world)!

See, that really was the award to win when you become a mainstream DJ- making it on at least the top 10 on that specific list. DJ Magazine was one of the most highly esteemed magazines when it comes to DJs and the EDM music industry in general. They always publish a yearly list of the top DJs in the world that year, chosen by both the editors of the magazine and by votes from the fans worldwide. To be on that list- especially in the top 10- would guarantee Arthur to maintain his face to the public and allow him to continue his career at a steady pace rather than being considered as a one-hit wonder.

Last year, Arthur won the 13th spot on the list- which is not so bad, once again considering that he wasn’t on the EDM scene for too long compared to the other competitors. Jean Épine on the other hand, managed to snag 12th place.

When the list came out that year, Arthur had not encountered Jean at all, and maintained a neutral opinion on it. He had always wanted to make it on the list, but he felt that maybe he should try not to tire himself out so soon and release a few songs rather than work on an album.

Now, after he met Jean and talked to him, there was something inside him that suddenly lit up. A fiery, red hot fury that forced and motivated him to dive headlong into all these separate projects as soon as he got back home to London in order to release an album by the summer the coming year, and at least releasing enough songs to present at various festivals such as Coachella and Tomorrowland. This leap in motivation could be mostly the anger and annoyance he felt whenever he saw his face and remembers how he mocked him that one night, as if they weren’t on equal grounds...actually, yes, now that he thinks about it, that is the reason why that flame lit up inside of him.

And so he met with artists, and started producing beats as soon as he can- Krishna, the owner of the studio that he uses so often, was a close friend of his when he first started to try to make music professionally. He should have used the studio that Braginsky offered to their artists, but Arthur owed Krishna a lot for helping him out and allowing him to use his space to make demos and remixes. Mei thought that it was a good idea- she knew Krishna wasn’t cheap, but he didn’t demand a lot.

  _“If you can get me signed on to an agreement with your company, I’m willing to give you the keys so you can use it whenever you want, and a cheaper rate,”_ Krishna had bartered, to which Mei knew would be good to make the company stronger since their studio was not as updated as Krishna’s studio.

 And so, that’s where Arthur spent most of his time, if he wasn’t out partying with other producers, flying out to events to perform or at home hungover and high from whatever he had the night before.

 He managed to land a collaboration with a singer from Portugal, a young man named João Santos, who was starting enter the English market in Europe and had a good following in the U.S. At first, Mei thought it would have been better to find someone who was already popular- and Arthur admits that João was hard to work with at first, not being used to collaborating with artists a lot. Arthur usually lends his voice when necessary, so working with someone else and allowing them to be equally involved in the process was new.

 But, he made it through, and they eventually became really close friends during the production process. Their song, _“Something Else”_ , was a hit right away, and ended up being the main track on his album that he later released during the summer. The music video was trending on YouTube for a long time, and Arthur had heard the song play on the radio for a long while.

 Most of songs played a lot as well and were good hits, but he knew that “ _Something Else_ ” would really help him out more than anything if he wanted to reach his goal.

 Maybe reaching for number one is a really high goal for someone who just started to have, but he would be fine with any number on the list- as long as he beated that womanizer, Jean Épine.

 He assumed that Jean Épine would not release an album that year- he didn’t think the man had the worth ethics to dedicate to another album so soon. Maybe Arthur had stalked him on Instagram and Snapchat to see what he was up- and most of his Stories were him partying and living it up surrounded by all these gorgeous people.

 Was Arthur jealous?

 No of course not!

 ...okay, maybe Arthur was a _bit_ jealous of how Jean seems to be surrounded by all these lavish things while looking like a million dollars while Arthur is putting in the work and looking sleep deprived to release good music. He does party, but it’s not like he’ll fly to Monaco with his friends for a whole week to live it up with models.

 No, he had to stay close to his new mansion in London and not get too distracted.

 However, his work certainly paid off - even though Jean Épine released an album after Arthur did, Arthur had a good feeling that his album would have a better chance. Jean Épine’s music, although catchy and good, still lacked some messages and relied heavily on love, sex, drugs.

 However, the media and fans had a different image of this. They saw that it was another form of competition between them, and started fuelling a few rumours of them only talking once and having a fight that resulted to them never meeting again. Although to Arthur, it is true there is a rivalry, it was entirely one side, and was less or a rivalry and more of showing to Jean what he’s made of.

 And Arthur especially felt good as he landed in Amsterdam the day before the festival on a jet that he can afford thanks to all the money he was accumulating over the year, with Mei and Yao accompanying him.

 Yao managed to book two wonderful rooms in one of the most high end hotels - one for Arthur that was located on the top floors and one for them further away as to not disturb him and be plagued by the sounds of potential partying all night.

 They were able to travel a bit around Amsterdam safely- it helped that Arthur could pass as a nobody with the right kind of clothings- and finally, the day arrived for him to get ready for to head for the Johan Cruyff ArenA.

 Yao stood his grounds against Mei when she wanted Arthur to dress formally, and Arthur was internally grateful that Yao was the one styling him. Yao had a good taste in modern fashion (especially street fashion), and he made sure that Arthur looked like a good mix of casual, but not too casual. The olive green jacket overtop a regular black shirt surprisingly suited his peach undertones and although he had to wear tight black jeans, he had to admit that he looked extremely nice in.

 They took a limo to the event, but Mei and Yao allowed to Arthur to get out first and meet up with his friends backstage.

 After talking to a few interviewers, as per usual before an event, Arthur caught up to Matthias, Tino, Berwald, and Lukas, who saved him a seat.

 The setup was like any award show, though the artists were further back from the stage, with the stage being on one end with the rest of the bottom floor being opened for fans and music goers. There were multiple screens on the wall of the stage- one in the middle in the shape of an hour glass and two closely fitting into the spaces. There were also two extra rectangular screens hung up on the pillar like parts of the stage. with a singular catwalk allowing them access to the presenters. There was a disk jockey station set up already for the performances that would go on during the award ceremony.

 “Ladies and gentlemen...welcome. Madames et monsieur...bienvenue. Dames en heren...welkom.”

 The stage slowly lit up as the women’s monotone voice continued, “Welcome to the world famous DJ poll ...The Top 100 DJs, presented by DJ Magazine.”

 The two co hosts appeared on the stage from behind the huge jockey, all dressed as one would expect to these awards. The crowd went wild until the cohosts started to talk, giving a small speech about the year in a nutshell for the community.

 Before announcing the top positions, the show presented awards on who had the highest position in each categories they offered.

 Lukas managed to snag one of these awards, coming up to 10th place, along with The Aftermath coming up to 5th place with the Highest Group Award.

 “Now, we will be announcing the top ten DJs that made it on the list!” The female announcer beamed, and the lights started to dim as the screens behind them lit up.

 The same monotonous women started to lost off the names of the winners besides the ones that won an award.

 By number four, the anticipation was building up for Arthur. A part of him was dreading that he didn’t make it on the list at all, and that his ranking was actually lower than last time. But a past of him knew that he was going to make it in the top 10…

  _As long as I beat Jean_ , Arthur thought hopefully, wringing his hands slightly. _I didn’t hear his name at all...does that mean he was lower than 10th?_

 There was a bit of glow inside of him, but he knew he had to suppress it until they named the number one DJ.

 He could hear some fans in the audience chant- some were saying KING repeatedly, which made Arthur feel good. But then there were some who said Jean, which slightly annoyed him, but he can’t lose face.

 “Number 2…” Arthur held his breath, and he could tell the audience was waiting. “KING!”

 Arthur’s heart skipped happily when he realised that not only was he in the top ten, but he was so close to first. Not bad for a newcomer...not bad at all. The crowd cheered and he saw his face on both of the side screens flanking the sides of the main screens in the middle, and Arthur finally felt less anxious and more relaxed.

 “THAT’S MY GUY, WOOOO!!!” Matthias yelled as he shook Arthur’s shoulder with a tight grip.

 “Amazing!” Tino exclaimed happily, clapping in joy for Arthur’s achievement.

 He may not have reached his goal, but this just means that he is still one of the top DJs. Things can only go up from here.

 “Now, we will be announcing the No.1 DJ in the world,” the male announcer started as the stage lit up for everyone to see. “No only will this DJ win this amazing title, but they will also be winning this year’s Dutch Artistic Prize created by the infamous classical Greek Artist, Grecia Karpusi.”

 The crowd cheered as a young woman brought a marble white statue on the stage- it was in a form of a pillar, and represented what it really means to be number one. To stand on top of the world that only has room for one.

 “And the world’s number one DJ is…” the man opened an envelope, and Arthur held his breath. It’s most likely one of the older, veteran DJs that released an album that year- it is likely they were going to win. They tended to have the biggest base compared to the newer DJs like himself and Lukas.

 “ **Jean Épine**!”

 Screams and cheers are heard. The stage went blue- the theme of that year’s poll.Confetti fluttered from the air as the stage lit up the catwalk, and all the cameras swooped around.

 Arthur froze.

 He couldn’t believe it.

 Did he hear that correctly?

 “How…”

 JEAN ÉPINE shone brightly in white in front of the disk jockey that was behind the hosts, and his name and face was plaster on all of the screens.

 Arthur’s eyes followed the figure that waltzed down the catwalk to the front, and he felt his stomach churning. His body felt heavy.

 It would have been fine if this was anyone else. He would have been okay with not winning the title.

But the fact is, he already lost to Jean Épine. He may have won of a prestigious award in Ibiza, but towards the end, it seemed like he wasn’t winning anything against him. Neither of them won an award at Ibiza...but in this case, between the two of them, there is one winner.

 Arthur gripped his fists, his knuckles turning whiter than they already were, and grit his teeth. Unfair. So many countless days working at the studio while Jean Épine partied and released a subpar and generic album.

 “Arthur are you okay?” Tino asked, worry in his voice, but he knew that Arthur was not okay. Arthur had talked to his friends before about how he felt about Jean Épine- though he made it seem like it was a small thing that just annoyed him slightly. Not some crazy goal he wanted to achieve to rub into the Frenchman’s face.

 Even though winning would really help him with bookings and opportunities, he wanted something more than the title- he wanted to feel like his creativity and hard work got him somewhere further.

 “Yes,” Arthur said as he started to clap with the others, wanting to be polite. “Just great.”

 Jean smiled as he accepted the award, and started with a quick speech, but Arthur tuned out. For the rest of the night, Arthur was out of it- the shock was too much for him.

 What was the appeal of Jean of all people? Lukas was in the same genre as him and he didn’t rank this high before.

 By the end of the night, Matthias was happily chatting with Tino as they started to walk out of the auditorium to head to a club with some other people they knew.

 “Arthur- are you okay?” This time it was Lukas who asked him, his voice soft and cool.

 Arthur tried hard not to have a frown, but he couldn’t help but feel like he let himself down.

 “Yeah, I’m fine,” Arthur replied quickly, trying hard not to sound salty. “Just feeling a bit tired. Maybe I should head back to the hotel.”

 “Bro, don’t leave now,” Matthias whined as he slung an arm around his shoulders, grinning wildly. “We still got to party while we’re all here! We have to fly out to LA tomorrow, and I don’t know when we’d have the time to see each other!”

 “It’ll be fun, c’mon Arthur,” Tino said a bit more gentler than Matthias.

 “Besides,” Matthias leaned in. “Amsterdam has some good weed- it might help ya. I gotchu.”

 Arthur easily gave in, and didn’t protest as they entered the same limousine to head over to their hotel- they all were staying in the same place, but the party was taking place in the big event room the hotel has to offer.

  _Maybe it would help me_ , Arthur thought, quickly messaging Mei where he was going, but she didn’t reply right away. Maybe she was sleeping.

 He did the same to Yao, who said not to do anything he wouldn't do. And knowing Yao, he wouldn’t take drugs- which is what Arthur was most likely to do.

 They entered the hotel, and they could hear the loud music of hip-hop from the event room down the hall, with the loud cheers of people that were inside the room and outside pool.

 Arthur greeted the host of the party, and the moment Matthias brought him to the island bar in the kitchen, Arthur didn’t think twice about downing the shots handed to him. The tequila burned his throat, forgetting to lick the salt and lime along with it, but Arthur was more concerned of getting drunk than the taste of whatever alcohol he consumed that night.

  _Fuck it_ , was the only thing he thought clearly, before he was absorbed into the party scene. With Matthias and Berwald, they found a place where there were other people waiting for Matthias to hand out the goods.

 Arthur inhaled the blunt deeply, and closed his eyes while exhaling. He immediately started feeling a bit droopy...he felt a bit more relaxed. Good thing he’s not taking ecstasy- he would have been more anxious than calm. More alcohol is passed around, and Arthur accepted a beer handed to him by who knows.

 God knows what happened next. He got up at one point and staggered outside of the room, saying that he wanted some fresh air. In the hallway of all places, of course, but he wasn’t thinking straight.

 Arthur laid across the couch that was near the door facedown, trying to breathe in something other than marijuana and tobacco smoke. His heart beated steadily to the sound of the  loud music that shook the sofa slightly.There was a plant he couldn’t name right beside him, and the way the big leaves touched his hair made him feel like he was one with nature.

 Arthur was completely gone at that point.

  _Breathing in nature’s finest oxygen source_ , he thought happily, lifting his head up here and there to make the leaves rustle.

 “I don’t think we’re allowed to go inside…”

 “Raivis, shush!”

 Arthur glanced up when he heard those voices and saw the familiar dirty blonde hair and glasses of one of his favourite person.

 “King! How’ve you been buddy! I didn’t get the chance to talk to you during the show!”

  _Not now…_

 “Eduard, how’d you get in?” Arthur tried his best to not sound as hazy and drowsy as he feels, sitting up immediately and straightening up his body.

 “I wanted to interview a few more people, and I know the guy. It’s still an open event ish,” Eduard said happily, smiling. He had a microphone in his hand, and his little cameraman was there with a smaller camera than he would usually lug around.

 "Don’t worry, this isn’t live! It’ll all be pre recorded! Can we ask you a few things about the event?”

 Arthur haphazardly thought about it- his mind was foggy, and he didn’t say anything other than nod.

 Eduard started the mini interview, asking him some things about the event, what he was wearing that night, and all those basic questions.

 Then he asked the million dollar question.

 “How did you feel when Jean Épine won as the world’s number one DJ?”

 Now. If Arthur was still the sober man that he usually is, he would have immediately praised Jean, saying that he deserved to win the award.

 But this isn’t sober Arthur. This is a mixture of drunk and high Arthur, Arthur who felt disappointed with his loss, and Arthur who was angry that that sorry little excuse of a producer managed to be number one without taking the whole music thing seriously!

 “Well, people will always like someone as long as they release generic sounding songs that you can party too,” Arthur slurred, smiling. “And if all it takes is to use samples of beats and waves to make hit songs that make people vote for you, then by all means, he deserves this award.”

 At that moment, Arthur felt proud that he said exactly what he wanted to say. What he said was what he said, and that was the end of people constantly asking him about that stupid man, Jean Épine.

 Unfortunately, Arthur didn’t know that this would actually be the beginning of his long standing media rivalry against Jean Épine.


	2. Chapter 1

_ “Always remember Arthur- it’s better to not say anything if you don’t have anything nice to say towards other artists. It’s best not to give the paparazzi what they crave for- they sell off of drama, and one day it’ll come back and bite you in the ass when all they’ll ask about is your fight with the other person. You don’t want to get into one so early in your career.” _

Those were the wise words of Yao during their first session of Yao coaching Arthur on how to present himself to the public.

There really is no difference in the reaction around you when you explicitly say you don’t like someone or you diss someone, whether your famous or not.

When you’re not famous, and you say something about someone in public, there’s the chance of someone you know that is outside of the people you’re telling this to hearing it and it becoming gossip amongst your circle of acquaintances and friends.

Same for when you’re famous, except the outsider you know is the paparazzi and entertainment reporters. And the gossip is not only within the industry- it belongs to the entire world who gives a shit about these things.

And, from the multiple line up of tabloids and magazines one would find at the local supermarket, it’s clear that there’s a lot of people who do give a shit.

After Arthur’s interview with Eduard that one fateful night, the gossip and talks already spread to most news outlets the next afternoon- when Arthur woke up back in his hotel bedroom.

Yao and Mei were sitting in the small living room area, waiting for Arthur to wake up, with Mei’s laptop propped on the coffee table with the interview on full screen. Yao, who’s face was almost as red as the shirt he was wearing, gave Arthur a long, well deserved lecture one what he has done and the implications of what he said to his career.

It’s different when you’re a DJ- you should be in solidarity with others due to the simple fact that your beginnings were harder for wanting an unconventional dream within the music industry. Not just anyone makes it big, and there is a reason there are fewer mainstream DJs compared to singers.

Mei  had her nose scrunched up slightly- something she does when she was also angry, but she wanted to hide it. After Yao’s scolding, Mei tried to be calm, and take a more gentler route.

_ “You’ll still get work, it’s just that now people will be pitting and comparing you and Jean against each other,” Mei said, tapping her slender fingers on her folded knee. Arthur, messed up from yesterday’s party, was laying back on the sofa, still trying to keep up with what Yao had just said. “And you’ll be getting more questions about him- something you always complained about.” _

_ “And I don’t think you want to be known as that guy who starts fights,” Mei continued in the same tone, before Arthur cut her off with a groan. _

_ “I didn't start a fight,” Arthur grumbled, covering his eyes with an arm, the light giving him a greater headache. “I just stated my opinion- it’s just an honest critique!” _

_ “Yeah, well, your little ‘critique’ will get you into a fight,” Yao snapped, his brows furrowing deeper. He took a deep breath, as he gathered his loose long, chestnut hair and began to put it in a neat ponytail, saying in a cooler voice, “We all know this industry loves when people have a beef, and it would come to the point that people will only remember you because of the fights.” _

_ “We’re not rappers- we’re not going to release diss tracks.” _

_ “No, but people will eventually start being choosy with who they collaborate with. You’ll have artists that will only collaborate with you, and those who would choose Jean, giving you limited opportunities,” Mei replied in Yao’s place. “You might get the short end of the stick and end up with unpopular artists-” _

_ “Look, I don’t care that much about who I collaborate with- as long as my work is original and sounds good, and isn’t some generic shit that the rich kids from Notting Hill are partying to.” _

_ “That’s not the point,” Yao huffed, before shaking his head in defeat. “Aiyaa….Mei what can we do?” _

_ “Do nothing- so I say shit about his music. So what? It’s not gonna end his or my career,” Arthur rolled his eyes, fixing the sofa cushion that was underneath his neck. “Now can you two please leave me alone? I don’t feel good and I have a headache and your voices are making it even worse…” _

_ “This is why we tell you not to drink!” Yao exclaimed, immediately going into the kitchen, going to the cupboard to grab a pot. Arthur couldn’t help but feel happy when he saw the pot- he knew Yao was going to make him soup. Despite him not being overseen and sort of babied by Mei and Yao, he appreciates it greatly when they would make food for him. And at this moment, Yao’s infamous soup is all Arthur wants. “It’s like we’re taking care Siu Chun everytime we go on these trips with you…” _

_ “Thanks Yao, you’re my favourite publicist,” Arthur said loud enough in a slurring and cracking voice, sounding like he was in the midst of dying. Which he partly was. _

_ “I’m your only publicist,” he could hear Yao mumble back. _

After that discussion (or moreso, a lecture), Arthur decided to turn to his phone to see what might have happened after that disastrous interview. Immediately, he saw Tino’s name on the screen, with a message accompanied with a bunch of worried face emojis.

**Tino:** _Arthur! I knew I shouldn’t have left you alone with Matthias! Are you okay? Did you see Weekly Entertainment??_

Arthur immediately replied back to let his friend know that he was okay, he safely made it to his hotel room (somehow), and that he was going to check the interview right away.

Arthur didn’t look too bad in the video, but he could tell that he was far away from sober and sane during the interview with the swaying and the dazed look on his face. And honestly, he didn't say anything  _ really _ bad- he just called Jean’s music generic, he didn’t even say that his music was shitty. 

But, after he read the comments on the video, he started to feel bad, and Mei’s opinion started to sink in properly- he really doesn’t want his life to revolve around Jean. 

And so the young Brit took to Twitter at the advice of Yao, ready to formerly write an explanation saying how he still respected Jean as a producer (even though it’s a lie, but nobody needs to know that), when he saw the issue trending on the homepage. Clicking it, one tweet popped up immediately, and caught Arthur’s attention- the one with little blue check and the accent egu in the username.

And it read simply:

_ The king is whining like a little prince. Sore loser much? _

**_@JÉpine_ **

Out went the civility and out went any way of saving a professional relationship. Arthur in turn lightly insulted him, but the light insults soon turned into them calling each other intentional insults through subtweeting. Notable insults include being a “weak motherfucker who wouldn’t dare fight Arthur because he might break a fingernail” and a “a whiny pussy who’s jealous that their music isn’t as good as they thought it was”.

Jean Epine’s true colours did show to the world during that Twitter dispute. So did Arthur’s.

What really took Mei by surprise, however, was that neither of their reputation was tarnished. Rather, people were still lining up to book Arthur for their festivals and his album sale actually increased suddenly. There were still plenty of fans backing both of them, and the biggest thing was, their dislike for one another just added on to their popularity.

This was the turning point in both of these young men music careers-their rivalry has been sealed for the public to enjoy.

And all of these events lead up to the present, years later.

***

_ “Just want to feel _

_ A bit alive for a moment...” _

Arthur glanced down to the array of slides and buttons, pushing and twisting them when appropriate, as João’s familiar voice sung the lyrics to the song from a playback recording. He could hear the crowd of people that surrounded the huge stage singing along, most bouncing up and down in a dance. 

Lights flashed around from the stage where he was standing, and lit up the darkness that had started to consume the open arena.

He was happy to do a set again at Tomorrowland, one of the most popular music festivals in the world, even though at this point in his life, he's been yo it many times. Boom, Belgium had always been one of his favourite places to go, and there was always had a vivid and excited crowd.

"Thank you, Belgium!” Arthur yelled into the microphone he had, and the crowd continued to scream and cheer, as he walked off to the side, feeling the adrenaline pulsing through his body starting to slow down.

He passed by the buzzing stage crew, who were scrambling to usher Arthur away from the stage and trying to find their next act. 

“Good job, King! That was great,” one of the performers called to him and he smiled and thanked them, before joining most of the performers that stood idly behind a curtain, hanging out.

He was in a good mood as he talked to the others, and wanted to stay, but he got a message from Mei saying that she was at the back of the arena to pick him up. Arthur intentionally wanted to hang back to watch Matthias, Tino, and Berwald’s performance, but decided against it- it was already late, and he was starting to feel slightly tired.

Arthur got up from the chairs and started to walk out when he suddenly, he spotted a man walking towards his direction, to the waiting area. His smile faltered, and his eyebrows drew in slightly, as he kept his walk at a consistent pace. The man noticed Arthur as well, and a smile grew on his face.

“Jean.”

“Petit Prince,” Francis replied with his thick French accent, taking off the dark sunglasses that covered his eyes.

_ What kind of douche wears sunglasses at night?  _ Arthur thought, though it did suit his face.

“I haven’t seen you in a while,” Arthur replied evenly, not wanting to show that that nickname that Jean gave to him bother him. “How was rehab? Are you still getting over your heroin addiction?”

Jean scoffed. “I have standards when it comes to drugs- heroin would ruin my perfectly beautiful arms.”

“There are different ways to take heroin,” Arthur rolled his eyes at Jean’s self compliment, while Jean smiled smugly. 

“Yes, you seem to know a lot about it. Nice shirt by the way. Where did you get it from- Tesco?”

“You’re lacking in the creative insult department- you better step up your game,” Arthur replied. “Then again, what can I expect from a man who lacks creativity?”

Jean clicked his tongue, and looked ready to talk back when suddenly, Matthias came out of nowhere between them.

“Jean! ‘Sup!!” Matthias suddenly interrupted their bickering, grinning wildly as he hung off of Arthur’s shoulders. The rest of Arthur’s friends have actually maintained a good relationship with Jean, despite Arthur’s personal feud with him. It was often that they would even invite him to the parties they would host, though, in those situations, Arthur learns to tolerate the Frenchman. “You’re on next right? Good luck with your set! Me and the guys can’t stick around too long to watch- but we can catch up next time at the DJ Awards, alright?”

“Thank you. I can’t wait to see you guys in Amsterdam!” Jean smiled, as Matthias was called over further away by Tinos.

Arthur was about to leave as well, not wanting to give the Frenchman the respect to say farewell, but Jean spoke up.

“Goodluck, petit prince,” Jean said in a more soothing tone. He then said in a much slyer voice, “You’ll need it.”

"Suck my dick, frog,” Arthur grumbled, his hands clenched into fists, marching away as Jean entered the stage. Arthur frowned when he heard the eruption of screams from the crowd, and quickly went further backstage to meet up with Mei, who was waiting in a limousine to take him to his hotel.

It’s been about 8 years since that one fateful night. 8 years of Jean and Arthur going back and forth like this. And was Arthur tired of it?

Hell no. If anything, his burning passion to be the best - or, at least, better than Jean- burned just as brightly as it has since their first conversation.

Each year was an opportunity for him to one up Jean and maintain his rightful place as the top DJ. And each year, well- it alternated.

See, after that year where Jean Épine took first place at the DJ Top 100 Awards, Arthur continued to create music, as did Jean. The next year, Arthur managed to beat Jean by getting first place, whereas the Frenchman got 2nd. It was one, if not, the single best thing that happened to Arthur at that point. The EDM scene went crazy over it- KING, who some tabloids made it seem like he was all talk and no bite, managed to beat Jean Épine.

But that sense of achievement only lasted for a year. Because the year after Arthur’s incredible win, Jean Épine once again reclaimed his spot, with Arthur coming close behind.

And thus, their rivalry, specifically in music,become more and more intense, with subtle jabs here and there when reporters would ask them about each other. Arthur maintains that Jean Épine has no actual substance to his music, whereas Jean flaunts that Arthur may just be jealous, because his music also lacks a particular motif- love. Sometimes they do manage to make civil conversation if the situation calls for it, though it would still be sprinkled in insults, and if they were unlucky (as they are) it dissolves into an argument.

They didn’t necessarily win first place each year, sometimes a different DJ that was not involved in the same areas as either of them would take that spot. However, they did manage to get a higher spot than the other.

So far, Arthur has won first place 3 times, with Jean placing first twice. Arthur, obviously, is winning in this little game they found themselves in. 

This year, if Jean managed to get first place, they would be tied. Something Arthur would like to avoid, in order to further crush Jean’s ego.

“Hey Artie, did you have fun?” Mei said in a motherly tone, a way of teasing his as Arthur slipped to the seat across of her. Arthur, however, was not in the mood for banter.

“I’m tired,” Arthur replied, as he leaned over to look out the window. “I can’t wait to go home.”

“I thought you liked coming here?”

“It was nice until…” He didn’t finish his sentence, knowing that it was the pettiest reason to want to leave a place.

“Jean?” Arthur’s eyes narrowed.

“You two are too old to keep this fight,” Mei continued, as she fidgeted with her phone. 

“I’m not that old,” Arthur grumbled, now feeling a bit grumpy thanks to Mei. 

“30? In the DJ world, I’d say it is,” Mei asked, though it was more so rhetorical. “Some tend to retire before that age and go into something else.”

“Those ones can’t handle the scene. And there are DJs that still play after they reach 40.”

“Yeah, but most go back to being more underground or they go to a genre that isn’t house,” Mei replied, finally taking her eyes off the screen, and looked directly at Arthur with a frown. “Which is what both you and Jean have been doing.”

“The day I retire is the day he dies,” Arthur muttered, returning his gaze back outside. “Can you play the radio?”

Mei did as she was told, flipping the channels around before landing on one playing popular music. There was this one song that started playing, a newer release that Arthur has heard once or twice before. What was it again...

“Did you hear about this guy?” Mei asked suddenly.

“What?” Arthur replied, not understanding what she meant.

“Lars Jansen,” Mei replied. “The guy who produced this song. He’s a DJ too.”

“Okay, and?” Arthur still didn’t understand why she thought he was relevant.

“He’s 19,” Mei shrugged. “What do you think of this song?”

Arthur listened to it for a moment, frowning slightly. “Reminds me a bit of Jean Épine’s songs...He’s 19?”

“I heard this from Eduard,” Mei continued. “He’s a rising producer this year. Kid’s from Amsterdam.”

“Why does it matter? He’s just a new kid- he might get written off in a few years.”

Mei raised an eyebrow, and Arthur read her thoughts. “You think this kid is going to knock me off the map?”

“Lukas even started to rebrand himself and his sound slightly, and Matthias and them continue to make music, but they no longer rank in the top 10. You might get a lower ranking this year,” Mei replied, in a more softer tone. “I’m just saying- there’s going to be newer DJs rising up. You two should stop wasting energy fighting like this. It’s like your rivalry is the only thing that’s keeping  **you** in the public eye. If you want to keep it mainstream, you’re going to have to change up your music to be like Jean-”

“I’m not doing that,” Arthur cut her off in a louder voice. “And I don’t care about the popularity! I just want to beat his arrogant ass.”

“You say that,” Mei sighed. “But trust me, when you stop being as famous as you are now, you’re going to have a hard time adjusting.”

“Like that'll ever happen,” Arthur mumbled, allowing himself to sink into the leather seats, watching the building pass by.

Maybe Arthur  _ should _ consider this option of rebranding himself. He wasn’t going to be any younger, and the older he got, although he maintains a famous, close to veteran status, the time where his music might fall out of popular demands is likely. Sounds are changing with the times, and now Arthur should try to stray away from his roots and go towards the sound that is well received nowadays.

Giving up his branding is rough, moreso for personal reasons. He is known for that punk mixed with electro sound and image- it symbolised his own emergence from a punk band to electronic music, by taking the best of both sounds and blending it beautifully. His lyrics had a tinge of angst and anger found in punk, meant to make the audience be in tune with their harshest emotions- he wasn’t into this chilling and relaxing or ‘money, bitches, strippers, fucking' shit. He finds that there is a good middle ground that could be used to dancing, a sort of empowerement in it where you could dance by yourseld in your room and feel good. 

Maybe it was time to rebrand.

Maybe.

***

_ They need to really stop paparazzi from getting in here _ , Arthur thought as he walked behind the rails leading into the backstage of the arena, smiling as the flashes of the cameras nearly blinded him.

It was now October and Arthur was currently in Amsterdam, which can only mean one thing: tonight was the awaited DJ Top 100 Awards.

The year had gone extremely well for him- with his newest album peaking the charts for a good few weeks, with the songs still playing on the radio till that month.

Arthur was expected to score quite high on the list- even hitting number one- however, ironically once again, so did Jean Épine. It was a close call really- a lot of people wasn’t sure who would win, but it was guaranteed either of them will get the number one spot.

_ I’m going to beat him,  _ Arthur thought as he walked down the carpet, entering through the set of doors backstage to where the performers were hiding away.

As Matthew and Tino chattered with interviewers that stopped them inside, the Brit noticed long blond hair flowing from the corner of his eyes as they entered through the door. He could hear some people screaming outside the person’s name, and Arthur tried not to let his smile turn into a frown.

“Jean Épine!” One of the interviewers called as he politely smiled and talked to them. Arthur knew he was staring for far too long, and started to shuffle away, when he saw a familiar face almost intervening his step.

“King! How about a pre-show interview?”

“What happened to saying ‘hello’?” Arthur asked Eduard with a smile.

“Nah, we’re tight, we don’t need to say that,” Eduard replied with a sly smile, a microphone in hand, and his usual cameramen standing nearby. “Shall we start?”

“Alright, as long as you don’t interview me at the after party,” Arthur said, as Eduard laughed, and they started the interview. The usual questions as usual, until Eduard asked this question, which Arthur didn’t know how to answer.

“So, this year we have a newcomer that a lot of people say might actually beat you two,” Eduard started, and there was a subtle intent in his voice. “Lars Jansen. Now, he has said previously that he was a fan of your work while he was trying to figure out his own sound, but he also says that Jean Épine was also a source of inspiration. Do you think that, considering how different your sounds are, Lars Jansen would be a  _ worthy adversary _ ?”

_ This kid again? _ Arthur casually thought after he gave some motivational answer along the lines of “Of course, I’ve heard his music and he does stand a chance!” as he caught up with Matthias, as they start to go into the auditorium again.

For some godforsaken reason, Arthur was seated right next to Jean Épine in the audience. He had specifically requested to sit in between Lukas and Tino, though they must have ignored it in favour for this seating, letting his other side open for Matthias.

_ There must be cameras on us, _ Arthur figured, scanning and noticed a camera perched so that it could nicely capture their section.

“Looks like we’re sitting together, prince,” Francis said from his seat as Arthur started to sit down beside him. He leaned closer, and Arthur could smell his cologne, which was mixed with the smell of tobacco. It wasn’t a bad smell- Arthur just didn’t like that he _ liked _ how Jean smelled. “I didn’t know you wanted to sit next to me all this time.”

“I don’t want to,” Arthur snapped. “Why would I want to sit with a pervert like you?”

“You always call me a pervert, but I don’t understand why,” Jean sighed. “I just love love. Why can’t we just be friends and get along, cher?”

“I’m not one of your little fuckbuddies, Jean,” Arthur replied, finally making eye contact with him. He could see the amusement in Jean’s attractive blue eyes, which made him slightly more agitated. “And I’d rather get hit by a car than be your friend.”

“That’s extreme,” Jean smirked, still leaning too close than necessary to Arthur. The lights on the stage started to flash slightly- a sign for the attendants to take their seats. “Looks like they’re going to start. I can’t wait to beat you.”

“They say that I have a good chance of getting top of the list,” Arthur sighed, pretending to be calm and not caring that much. Slight boredom crept as Matthias left Arthur’s side to bug Lukas when he thought. If he was going to sit beside Jean motherfucking Épine, he might as well talk to him. It can help him recharge without losing his egde.

“Hey, did they ask you about Lars Jansen?” Arthur suddenly asked, thinking back to the interview question he got from Eduard.

“Yeah, they asked about whether I was worried he’d beat me,” Jean replied, a perfect eyebrow raised. “Though, I said I only care about our little competition.”

“It won’t be a competition if I win tonight,” Arthur scoffed, as the hosts for the event appeared to on the stage, and the event started.

The night progressed and finally, it was time to announce the top 10 DJs of the year. The familiar screens lit up and the lights started to dim slightly.

“Number 3...KING.”

“Number 2...Jean Épine.”

“Wait...that means,” Arthur mumbled wide eyed, completely taken by surprise at his ranking for two reasons. The first, which wasn’t too devastating, is that Jean Épine beat him this year. Which isn’t too bad- they were technically tied in this case. The second, which was much more of a big deal, was the fact that neither him or Jean snagged first place.

He glanced over to Jean, who had a mixture of content, but mild confusion, on his face. Mei guaranteed that spot would be either of theirs...so why did they place second and third?

“Ladies and gentlemen, the world’s number one DJ is…” the host opened the envelope once again. A pause, and the leaned into the mic.

“ **Lars Jansen!** ”

Arthur didn’t know what to do. And neither did Jean Épine, actually. Neither of them really cheered, instead opting to simply clap to be polite.

Now this took them by surprise.

They watched as a tall man walk down the catwalk, wearing stylish clothings as you would expect Jean to wear, with his gelled up blond hair kept up like Matthias to reveal an incredibly handsome, yet stoic, face. It was hard to believe the this person was still considered a teenager- he wasn’t awkward looking and well built, and he didn’t have a single mark or pimple on his white skin. 

He spoke into the mic to say thank you to everyone, and Arthur was taken aback by how deep his voice was, which carried a Dutch accent that added a control to his voice.

Arthur didn’t know what to say to this spectacle that he was witnessing. Neither could Jean, evidently, because throughout the post op and the drive down to a fellow DJ’s mansion that was located in the city, they both didn’t talk or argue (to everyone in the limo’s relief) as much as they would.

They weren’t the only ones surprised- most of the people who greeted them at the party (all around his age and were considered to be nearing veteran stardom as well) made a comment about how a young boy like Lars Jansen beat both of them.

Arthur and Jean were currently sitting on the bar stools at the island in the kitchen, across of Tino and Lukas who sat opposite to them. Pre downloaded songs shuffled through the background, and everyone around them were either guzzling down beers, snorting lines on any surface, skinny dipping in the swimming pool outside, or doing a combination of all three. Arthur decided to not deep dive into the scene right away- everytime he does, he gets wasted too early and gets into some shit- and waited as Berwald tries to find some decent beer. 

Lukas was mindful not to bring up Lars at all during their conversation, and it was starting to be a complaining circle of how little sleep they receive, when Matthias stumbled towards them, cackling at his phone.

“Bros, you two are definitely not gonna like this,” Matthias laughed as he nudged his phone towards Arthur, as Jean leaned over his shoulder to peer at the screen. It was originally a live post show interview that occurred inside of the arena, and lo and behold, it was by everyone’s favourite reporter. 

_ “What do you think about placing above both KING and Jean Épine whom you've always looked up to? The world is amazed that someone as young as you was able to dethrone two of very popular veterans, and a lot were surprised at that feat. Do you, yourself, find it surprising that you beat them?” _

Lars, with his piercing dark blue eyes, held eye contact with Eduard, and Arthur could tell there was a cocky smirk playing on his lips.  _ “I really respect both of them and I’m happy that I won, but I’m no surprised that I beat them. At this point, their music and sound doesn’t resonate with the EDM crowd as it once did, and, you know, times are changing and people are liking different things. As they say, out with the old and in with the new, and right now their old sound isn’t as popular as it once was. It’s mostly popular with people who are their age, so old people, but not for the new generation of EDM listeners.” _

 

Arthur heard Jean audibly gasp (but only when he implied to be old), and he himself was at a lost at words at how direct Lars’ answer was. What happened to respecting your elders?

“Kid’s got guts to say that,” Lukas noted as he took a sip from his beer. Berwald slid two bottles towards Arthur and Jean as he sat on the stool beside Tino, nodding along.

“A lot of the newer DJs are starting to get feisty with each other,” Tino replied, taking a nacho from the platter. “You know, it’s not like how it used to be- everyone used to keep it behind the scenes.”

“These two really helped start the whole public beef thing in the EDM scene,” Matthias shrugged towards Arthur and Jean, and Arthur threw a look of annoyance. “You two would cuss each other out publicly, and would’ve threw hands if Jean wasn’t so civil.”

Arthur just made a slight grunt and starting to down the drink. Jean made a hum in agreement, while taking a quick sip.

“Now you guys can join the underground squad,” Matthias continued, reaching out for another bottle. He took his bottle opener keychain and popped it open, the white foam spilling over the tip down the neck. “Just like the rest of us here.”

“What do you mean?” Jean spoke up.

“C’mon Jean, you know what I mean,” Matthias laughed, his smile a bit wicked. “You guys won’t be invited to so many popular events, and if you do, you won’t be headlining compared to the popular ones. Less paparazzi hounding you down, which is nice, but less attention means less fans and smaller concerts. Partying will be the same, but don’t expect the famous bitches to be there- they’d rather be with someone relevant. It’ll be just like the good old times before you made it mainstream-”

“You’ll be one of those people that are known,” Lukas said, lifting Matthias bottle so that it was in his mouth, to shut him up. “And now you’re rich, but you’re just not relevant. You’ll be considered old school.”

“If the drugs and alcohol won’t force you to retire, this will,” Tino said cynically, though he had his usual upbeat voice. “Most people do it and go back to playing sets at the club sometimes.”

“You’ll definitely miss the rush of being famous,” Matthias mumbled, and if the gloominess of the conversation hasn’t fallen on them yet, it has now.  _ The Aftermath _ had fell off from the public eye, and while Lukas has a grip on the fame, it was only a matter of time before he would have to start to go underground. 

They were all older though, nearing their late 30s. Jean and Arthur were still in their early 30s, with Arthur turning 30 that April. He was quite young to be written off from the media as out of touch with the younger crowd, yet, he did break out into the mainstream early on in his life. It’s been more than a decade since he has- was he really ready to let go of being relevant.

The idea of ending up like Matthias was unpleasant. Arthur wasn’t sure how to word it exactly, but he knows he hasn’t seen them at all during the big events yearly events DJs would be invited to, and their not as hyped up in popular media as they once were, much less in the EDM scene. There were just a distant memory, a name dropped here and there on radios during their ‘Throwback Thursday’ day.

Nowadays, due to not being as busy as they once were, Arthur noticed that Matthias had started to find other ways to feel high and satisfied with his life - mostly through drugs and alcohol- much more than he did before, but he couldn’t really judge him. After all, Arthur isn’t exactly clean himself.

“Pass me another one,” Jean demanded in a louder tone, his eyebrows pulled in, as if he was having the same internal talk with himself as Arthur.

“Same,” Arthur said immediately and Berwald didn’t hesitate to silently stand up and grab them their drinks.

“Don’t look so gloomy guys!” Tino said, his voice chipper. “This is a party! Let’s have some fun and do some shots!”

“Fuck yeah! Who wants some fucking tequila?!” Matthias suddenly exclaimed, standing up, and started to chant drunkenly ‘Tequila! Tequila! Tequila!”

“Let’s not dwell on this any long, mon prince,” Jean sighed whimsically, putting an arm on  Arthur’s backrest, brushing against his back amicably. Maybe it was the warm buzzing feeling Arthur had started to feel after his first drink, but for once, Arthur didn’t feel the need to tell Jean off. If anything, he leaned back deeper into the arm, and a flicker of appreciation lit in him. “Let us drink the night away.”

“What else can we do,” Arthur replied as whimsically as Jean had, and downed the rest of his beer, as Matthias lined the glass shots in front of them.


	3. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! I'm glad you guys are continuing to read this story, and thank you so much for those who leave a comment! <3 
> 
> This chapter is relatively short- it's really a bridging chapter, but hopefully, I'll finish the next one soon ~
> 
> Also, quick heads up I decided to merge the prologue together.

Arthur awoken with a jolt, immediately being greeted with a sharp pain in his head and the sound of someone throwing up coming from a hallowed room-likely a bathroom.

The room was dark, with the curtains still drawn in together, Arthur was unsure where he was exactly.

He attempted to move his head, his muscles straining slightly after staying still for so long, and he realised he was in a bedroom, laying on a king size bed. However, he quickly realised from the abstract photographs hanging on the opposite wall beside the flat screen TV, this was not his hotel room.

“Where,” he barely mutter out, his throat and mouth bone dry, and he attempted to sit up slightly. The smell of alcohol, cigarettes, and weed clung in the air as he inhaled sharply, his eyes adjusting to the darkness.

He could hear someone muttering, and he noticed the stream of light shining on the floor, coming from the bathroom he assumed was attached to the room.

“Sorry,” he could hear a hoarse voice say quietly, and from how high the tone is, he figured it was Tino. The poor guy must have drank more than his tiny body could handle.

He heard someone groan and stirr beside him and he jumped slightly as he looked over, not realising that he was sharing the bed with someone. The person was fully covered by the white duvet that Arthur was also underneath, and Arthur couldn’t tell who it was.

“P’taiiin,” the person moaned, as an arm pulled down the blanket from their face, revealing their also half naked torso, their loose golden hair in disarray.

If it weren’t for his throbbing head and the welling in his stomach, Arthur would have probably flipped his shit when he realised who the person was.

Did we have sex? Was all the he could tell himself in slight panic, as he quickly tossed the duvet off of the bed.

Lo and behold, it was indeed a shirtless Jean Épine, but to Arthur’s relief, he still had his jeans on from the previous night, and the shirt he was wearing was looped through his other arm, as if he had attempted to take off his shirt but forget to toss it completely off. Arthur himself was, thankfully, fully clothed, with his button up denim shirt tossed to the ground so that he was wearing a black shirt.

And to further make Arthur less anxious, he found that Matthias was sleeping soundlessly between them, though he had stripped off all of his clothes save for his boxers, cradling and cuddling a big tequila bottle in his arms.

“Fuck,” Arthur groaned as he attempted to get out of the bed, trying his best to steady himself on his legs as he walked towards the curtains, opening them slightly. It was early afternoon, and luckily for them, the sun decided to bless them by shining brightly over Amsterdam.

If Arthur wasn’t in the middle of mentally dying, he probably would have loved this view.

“Close the curtains,” Jean grumbled after cursing in French as Arthur left a gap to allow some sunlight to illuminate the room.

Footsteps can be heard, and Berwald peered out of the bathroom, dark circles underneath his eyes but not looking as bad as everyone else in the room.

“Water?” was all Berwald asked, when suddenly the sound of vomiting can be heard again, and he quickly went back inside.

Arthur stumbled towards the bathroom, knowing that he might need it, and he found that it was, as he had assumed, Tino hunkered over the toilet. Berwald was behind him, holding his bangs out of the way. Hearing and watching Tino reminded Arthur’s stomach of the turmoil it was going under, and he quickly left the room, entering the nearest bathroom trying to avoid stepping on a male and female models that were sleeping in the hallway.

After finishing emptying all the contents of his stomach in the toilet, and managing to wash his face with cold water and use some mouthwash, Arthur trudged outside, and heard some clanking coming from the kitchen.

As he stepped on the two stairs leading to a open landing that is the kitchen, he could see Lukas from behind the island counter near the stove swish around at the creaking of the wood beneath Arthur’s feet.

“You look like shit,” Lukas said casually, looking as normal as he usually does (curse him), pouring hot water into a cup. “You want some Advil?”

“Yeah,” Arthur groaned, as Lukas opened a drawer and tossed a small container towards Arthur. “Your hotel room?”

“Yeah. We came here after we left the party.I’ll make you some tea,” Lukas replied, while Arthur took a clean cup of water that was on the table, assuming it was Lukas’. “And I’ll wait till everyone is awake. I need to talk to you guys about something.”

“What about?” Arthur managed to ask as he took a seat at the island counter, and Lukas

“You’ll see,” Lukas said ominously, not talking further in order to let Arthur relax.

Matthias was the last one to wake up, with Jean managing to get out of bed, and Berwald accompanied Tino who had to lay on the couch for a while. There were a few other people who were there, some models and some DJs, who left immediately to return to their hotel room before their managers could hunt them down for being missing.

“Lukas,” Matthias moaned from his spot on the island counter, his face in his folded arms. His blond hair fell flat over his forehead and his arms as he moved his head around. “My head hurts.”

“We all have a headache, moron,” Arthur snapped, his eyebrows furrowing at Matthias’ whiny voice.

“Shh, no yelling this early,” Jean said in a soft tone, though his voice was dry. Arthur shot him a glare, annoyed that Jean had volunteered to make their crew some breakfast and somehow managed to look fucking good despite experiencing a hangover himself.

“Lukas,” Matthias still moaned as he leaned his head towards the Norwegian, who had took a seat next to the man, and Lukas just patted his head so he could stop complaining.

Arthur took a sip of his tea, and his chest felt slightly better that it had when he first woke up. He was attempting to recollect the night’s event, however, all he could remember was up until Matthias showed him the video of Lars Jansen’s interview, and drinking a beer or two.

“What happened last night?” Arthur asked out loud, trying hard to grasp to any memory, but to no avail. Everything turned black and splotchy after he had watched the video.

“What do you remember?” Lukas sighed, leaning in as he took a sip of his coffee. The sound of toast popping from the toaster could be heard, and the scent of the omelettes Jean was making wafted into the air, distracting Arthur slightly.

“I know we watched that kid’s interview,” Arthur said, frowning. “And I had a beer, but I don’t remember anything afterwards.”

“You don’t remember the tequila shots we took?” Jean asked glancing over to their direction. Arthur could see a smirk growing on his face, as he said, “You took four straight shots back to back right after Matthias laid them out.”

Arthur raised his eyebrows in surprised. Four tequila shots right off the bat? He was avoiding getting too drunk that night in fear of saying or doing something he might regret the next morning.

“And?” Arthur asked, looking at Lukas. The look on Lukas’ face was unreadable, and instead of answering to Arthur, he looked over at Jean.

“Jean...What do you remember from last night?”

To this, Jean stopped shifted the pan in his hand, as if in thought, before quickly using the spatula to fold the contents.

“Hm. I remember Arthur taking tequila shots, and then we danced a bit,” Jean replied, still thinking. “I think we had another beer, before we decided to head over here. I remember that some pretty models coming with us.”

Of course you remembered the models, Arthur rolled his eyes, as Jean hummed in disappointment.

“I don’t remember what happened after we came here,” Jean continued. “I assume we drank some more.”

“You guys seriously don’t remember what happened?” Lukas asked, cocking an eyebrow up. When Arthur returned his question with a shrug, Lukas sighed. “...your managers are gonna kill you two.”

To this, Arthur’s face twisted in confusion, and he exchanged a worried glance with Jean.

“Hold on...Do you guys have your phones?” Lukas asked after patting his pockets, realising he didn’t have his.

“Here,” Berwald said as he entered the kitchen, with Tino behind him, finally ready to sit down straight. He had his phone in his hand, pointing it towards Lukas.

After Lukas fidgeted with the screen, he gestured for Arthur to come closer to him. Jean finished the plates he was preparing, and brought them to the table, and he stood behind Lukas, while Arthur took a seat beside him.

They were on Berwald’s snapchat, and Lukas clicked on Matthias’ story to show the multi seconds snippets of videos and photos he had uploaded from the night before.

After passing the photos of Matthias holding and kissing a bottle of Tequila and other selfies of them together, the still frames switched to videos. First it was of them in a limousine as Arthur popped a champagne bottle and pouring it in glasses for everyone who was there, then of them venturing in the hotel hallways to their room.

The videos continued until they reached a point where it was them at this very island bar. Or more specifically, it was a very Arthur hanging off of an equally intoxicated Jean shoulder, a beer in his hand, with Matthias videotaping the whole thing.

Arthur could feel his ears heating up in embarrassment, before the feeling spread to his cheeks as he watched how close he was to Jean in the video. There was little distance between them, with their faces were a few centimetres apart- close enough to kiss if one of them made a wrong step.

“ _Listen, listen, listen_ ,” a drunk and swaying Arthur said, looking directly as Jean, who happily held him up so couldn’t fall. He pointed at the camera, or more so he was trying to point at Matthias, and looked at him while saying, “ _Jean is my fucking lad, okay? I fucking hate this guy, but I fucking love this guy, okay._ ”

“Okay, okay,” Matthias agreed drunkenly, obviously not knowing what he was doing or what he was agreeing to.

“ _Only I’m allowed to tell him how shitty his music is. Who does this kid think he is...guh...If I call his music old and stupid and outdated, that’s fine, but no one else can say that. Capisce?”_

_“Okay, okay.”_

_“How can anyone call this guy old, look at his sexy face!_ ” Arthur then placed a hand on Jean cheeks, who didn’t stop him. “ _No wrinkles in sight!_ ”

The video cut since it was only a few seconds, and Jean let out a chuckle.

“You think I’m sexy?” Jean asked as he placed a hand on Arthur’s shoulder, who smacked it away quickly.

“Fuck no,” Arthur grumbled as the next video played.

“ _You know what we should do, Jean_ ,” Arthur’s voice dropped from shouting to talking, thought it was obvious he thought he was whispering.

“ _Do tell me, cher,”_ Jean replied back, not hiding his flirtatious tone, his French accent thicker that it made his words slurring together, looking like he might fall over at any second.

“ _Keep this a secret_ ,” Arthur replied in the same talking tone, as he glanced around suspiciously. The video cut, and jumped to Arthur mid conversation, who’s smile had widened as he leaned into Jean, “- _we're gonna make a fucking album together_.”

“ _An album_?” Jean repeated, a bit wondrous.

“ _Yes, a fucking album. We're gonna fucking make some music and put those fuckers in their place_ ,” Arthur exclaimed. Arthur looked at the camera saying, “ _Me and Jean are officially going to be releasing an album next year._ ”

“ _Yes_ ,” Jean proclaimed suddenly, looking like it finally settled in, and laughed. “ _We’re gonna make an album!_ ”

“ _Follow me on twitter for updates!_ ” Arthur said seriously, before the video ended, and the entirety of Matthias’ story stopped there.

Nobody said anything, a stunned silence falling over them, until it was interrupted by Matthias’ cackle.

“Damn, you guys are gonna collab?” He asked as he ran a hand through his hair, glancing up to Arthur.

For years they have been known as rivals- and now suddenly they claimed to be collaborating on an album in the coming year?

Arthur suddenly got up and went into the room he was sleeping in, and found his phone sitting on the drawer beside his side of the bed. He quickly pressed the button and the screen lit up.

He had a mini heart attack when he saw the notifications.

100+ Twitter notifications, and 50 missed calls from both Yao and Mei combined. Arthur was more scared of the latter notifications than the Twitter ones.

“Eduard obviously made a video about this,” Lukas said to Jean as Arthur returned to the living room area, quickly dialling Mei’s number. “And it’s trending on Twitter too. Everyone is hyping up this collab.”

The phone rang thrice, before the click of the call being picked up was made, and Arthur swallowed.

“Hello?” he said meekly, and he could hear Mei’s sharp exhale.

“ _Good thing you’re awake_ ,” Mei said sharply. “ _Matthias’ manager told me you were with them, so we knew you were safe._ ”

“Yeah…” Arthur replied unsurely, the tension seeping through his phone.

_“...Did you check your Snapchat?”_

“...Yeah…”

_“So you know what’s going on right?”_

“Yeah…”

_“Call the chauffeur when you’re ready to come back. We're trying to get back home by tonight. The Boss wants to talk to us."_

Arthur felt his heart fall slightly when he 'The Boss', and he didn't know what to say. The situation must be very serious for the CEO of their management company wants to get involved.

With that, Mei courtly hung up the phone, leaving Arthur dumbfounded. The churning feeling built up in Arthur’s stomach, and he quickly stumbled into a bathroom, emptying his stomach again.

* * *

  
“Two things,” Yao said as he paced slowly across the TV that hung on the wall behind them.

Arthur swivelled in his office chair slightly, tapping a rhythm underneath the long office table that separates himself and Mei. Sitting down the table monitoring this meeting was the CEO’s son, who sat happily as he watched Yao chew Arthur out.

“One,” Yao stopped and looked at Arthur. “You got wasted again despite me telling you to take it easy on the alcohol.”

“And we’re not saying you can’t party,” Mei interjected softly. “You can do whatever you want- but we’re here to help further your career, so you getting blackout drunk tends to give you a negative image.”

“And you tend to say things you end up regretting, and then I have to come up with something to tell the magazines,” Yao continued. “And two: of all the things you’ve said while blackout drunk, claiming you and Jean Épine are collaborating is...is….”

“I think it’s a great idea,” Mei filled the silent frustration from Yao.

“I think it’s a good idea too!” The CEO’s son, a young man with silveresque hair, chimed in a light voice that didn’t suit the tall and muscular body.

“It’s not for me, Ivan!” Yao replied. “Collaborating with someone else and creating such a huge project for yourself will make you hide from any public events and potential shoots for the next year that I have to reschedule! Do you know how long I had to fight to get you to have a photoshoot with Gucci for their spring catalogue?”

“As his manager, I also care about his public image,” Mei said, her eyebrows pulled in. “Yes, we might have to make room for Arthur to make his album, but think of this- the media and his fans are in a frenzy and are excited about this album! This can be the thing that brings Arthur back as a producer and not one half of a rivalry!”

“What do you think, King?” Ivan suddenly asked, glancing at Arthur, who was half paying attention to what anyone said, thinking for himself. “How do you feel about this?”

“Me?” Arthur asked, glancing at Ivan to avoid Mei’s stare.

Ever since they got back from Amsterdam to London for a day, Arthur was thinking about what he (and Jean) have claimed that night.

They publicly stated that they would be collaborating on an album- not even a single. A fucking album.

And everyone around him went insane with anticipation and excitement. He had watched the video that Eduard had hosted based on what had happened, featuring Matthias’ snaps and his own opinion on the album.

“Like at the end of Romeo and Juliet, two enemies are joining together, ending a long standing rivalry,” Eduard had commented. “Minus the people dying.”

 _Seriously? Romeo and Juliet?_ Was all Arthur had thought, and he read the comments underneath the video. An overwhelming amount were in support of an album, being fans of both DJs and claimed that they would make the best songs that year. A handful, however, said that they were doing this thanks to what Lars had said about them- their relevance was declining and this was their last attempt to stay popular.

Fans have spammed him on Twitter demanding details, and when to expect the first single to drop, none of which Arthur replied to, wanting to actually think this situation through.

And for once, he decided that he really needed Mei and Yao’s guidance on this issue.

A big part of him actually found the idea interesting. And he had to agree with some of the comments- if he wanted to stay famous and relevant, then creating this album would give him a chance.

Plus, if the album is a success, and fans votes for them, it would guarantee a top two position on the DJ Top 100.

And if Arthur snagged first place once again, he would be in the lead in their little competition. This may be their last year doing anything major like this before making singles as they always did- Arthur may as well try to be the number 1 DJ and rub it in Jean’s face that despite them making music together, he was the better one of the two.

The smaller part of Arthur told him that, on a rational level, working with someone like Jean would cause a major long-term headache. Their creative differences would cause them to clash, from the simplest things like the beat to the lyrics, making this project harder than it should be.

Although….Maybe the expiry of their rivalry was long overdue, and Lars, a 19 year old boy who made a sleeper hit, winning the number one DJ spot was a wake up call for Arthur. Maybe Arthur should stop wasting energy on this rivalry with Jean, and they should combine their popularity together to make the best album of the decade.

“I...think I want to do it,” Arthur nodded, making eye contact with Mei. A small smile grew on her face, as she looked at Yao, who was not ready to argue back, and just nodded.

“It’s going to be hard,” Yao sighed. “And you two would be around each other for a long time. Do you think you can handle being in each other’s presence without starting world war 3?”

“If it means that I can make good music that people like, then I’ll be civil,” Arthur replied, and he could see Mei typing on her phone.

“We’re going to meet up with Camille and Jean,” Mei said. Despite their rivalry, Mei and Camille, Jean’s manager, have maintained a good professional relationship, that bordered friendship whenever they were in the same city. “If this is going to work, you two would have to be near each other for better access. You two have properties in Los Angeles, right?”

“Yeah, but I don’t usually go there,” Arthur recalled. “Oh...I haven’t visited my Montréal home in a while. Should go there.”

“We’ll figure it out when we meet them,” Mei nodded, as she got up from her seat suddenly. “Let’s go. Camille agreed to meet us at Jean’s home in Paris.”

“Why are you getting up?” Yao asked, as Mei gestures for Arthur to stand up.

“We can’t delay,” Mei announced. “We have to get this whole album ordeal over with before we can do anything publicly. We should start asap while there’s still hype!”

“Okay,” Yao sighed, rubbing his temples as he thought. He took out his phone, looking down while saying, “My phone has been exploding with call all morning- I’ll see if I can set up an interview on it.”

“Anytime before next week would be best,” Mei said as she slipped her arm through her purse. Arthur also stood up, waiting idly for them to finish, and she looked at Arthur, “Don’t do anything on social media until we got this deal sealed and we figure out how it’s going to work out.”

“Okay,” Arthur simply nodded, as he followed Mei’s quick steps out of the glass door, ready to see Jean.


	4. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WOW I DIED FOR A MONTH
> 
> but trust me guys, I'm not gonna give up this piece anytime soon, I find it too interesting to let go lol.  
> I know this chapter is short (and the writing is...pretty bad), but I'll try to make the next one much more interesting!
> 
> Also, thank you guys so much for the support! I hope you continue to enjoy the story and I'll see you in the next update!

“Bienvenue à Paris,” Camille greeted them with a smile as soon as they entered the car she was driving- a black Volvo with tinted black windows, ensuring that it doesn’t draw any unnecessary attention to them.

After being able to pass through the airport and land without being snapped and noticed by the paparazzi, Arthur and Mei managed to get to Paris, France, in one piece. It was only a two hour flight, and they arrived just in time for the 4 o’clock rush hour on the thin city streets.

“Jean said that he would be waiting for us at home,” Camille said as Mei closed the car door behind them, Arthur taking off his pretentious sephia sunglasses and tucking them in his shirt, exposed underneath his beige trenchcoat. Once they have settled into the seats, Camille started to pull out of the spot she was waiting in, and Arthur nearly had a heart attack at how quickly she pulled out, almost skimming a car that flew past them.

“He would have came and picked you guys up, but he got a speeding ticket again last week, and his license has been suspended for a month,” Camille continued, her voice light and unconcerned about the drivers on the road that would attempt to overtake her suddenly as she continued to drive with just as much edge.

 _If this driving doesn’t land you a ticket, then I don’t want to know how his is like,_ Arthur thought, glancing over at Mei with a worried face, but she continued on with the conversation with Camille, unbothered.

They continued on the road, Arthur nodding along with whatever Camille and Mei said, before Camille turned into a specific part of the city that clearly appeared be much cleaner and more bougie compared to the streets he has seen so far. Camille eventually brought them to a road, with tall, French mansions lined up along the sides, before they stopped at one specific house.

The guard at thin black gates noticed Camille in the van, and he quickly opened it to allow them to drive up to the mansion. Arthur gritted his teeth at the estate- the mansion itself was wide and tall, made of light beige bricks with a set of stairs leading to the dark mahogany coloured door and a roof held up on balistairs. A few of the windows on the second floor that lined up along the side where Camille parked had mini balconies, looking over the estate’s lawn that had a few trees up the cement path. The orange and yellow leaves of autumn gave this estate more colour and an interesting aesthetic that Arthur couldn’t help but look around in awe.

It was modern, yet had a sense of being from 18th century, and was likely owned by French aristocrats for a long time until it was renovated and sold to common people. If common meant ‘rich beyond belief’.

They walked up the stairs, Arthur half heartedly admiring the dying plants that lined up along, the few flowers left giving off a lovely scent, and they reached the door, to which Camille rang the doorbell. When there was no immediate reply from the video camera speakers that was against the wall, Camille knocked on the door harshly, to find that it was unlocked.

Camille mumbled something under her breathe, sounding as if she were cursing Jean off for being careless, and opened the door wider. Arthur could see the double set of stairs that winded up against both sides of the wall leading to the second floor, with black and gold railings with intricate designs and a giant glimmering chandelier hanging from the ceiling giving off a sophisticated air.

No wonder Jean would never host parties at his place in Paris- from the decorative eggshell coloured chairs and lounge couch in the centre surrounding a flower centrepiece to the oil paintings of sceneries along the wall, a party would only destroy and tarnish the polish beauty of his mansion.

“Jean!” Camille called after allowing Mei and Arthur to enter first, and Arthur could see that Camille’s face suddenly became tired. She quickly led them to the living room connecting to the front, gesturing for them to take a seat.

“I’m afraid Jean must be asleep or still getting ready,” Camille said quickly, her eyebrows pulled down in apology. “Please, make yourselves comfortable! If you need to use the washroom, there’s one over there, down that hallway. I’ll be right back!”

Camille quickly walked out, heels clicking on the white marble tiles and immediately, Mei made her way to the other side of the living to the hallways that was connected.

“Thank god she told us where the washroom is,” Mei said, glancing over to Arthur. “Sit tight- I’ll be right back!”

“But-” Before Arthur could protest further, Mei spun on her heels and disappeared through the doorway, leaving Arthur alone. Arthur took a deep breathe, frowning, before looking around the white room, taking in the furniture and design.

 _I knew he would be an vintage kind of guy, but not one for antiques,_ Arthur scoffed as he glanced around, walking up to the low plush cushion table with a flat glass plate on top that stood in the centre of the room, in front of the white limestone fireplace.

From Jean’s properties Arthur has been to before for his after parties after a show or festival in LA and Vegas, Arthur had the vibe that Jean would be more into modern art deco with a hint of nitpick vintage, yet, his personal habitat shows that he was a man with old taste. The chairs were old, made of wood and hand carved, with a textured navy blue fabric around the cushions. The couch was hand carved as well, with swirling designs bordering the back, and the same navy blue colour for the cushioning. More oil painting hung along the wall, with antique vases on the few bedside tables adding a beige to the palette.

Beside the fireplace, Arthur noticed there was a slim, black bookstand, with a few books lined up on the top rows, before filling up with thicker binders at the bottom- from the design of the binders, they appear to be photo albums.

Now, Arthur was not one to snoop into someone’s private photo album, but really, if they were that private, why would you leave it in your living room bookstand where anyone could look at it? There was one specific album, a relatively thin one, that stuck out, appearing to have been pulled out previously and was not placed back in properly.

Arthur crouched on his toes, taking the album in his hand. It was black, with a flexible spine, and Arthur knew it was meant for more casual photos. Arthur opened the cover, holding back his laughter when he saw the first two photo.

It was Jean- a much younger Jean in his late teens with short blond hair and less wrinkle on his face, who was standing at an old disk jockey. He was in a dark place, and there was smoke around him, likely in a small club, and the first photos shows him looking down the many green and red lights above the array of knobs in front of him, with the other one noticing the photographer and smiling a cheeky smile.

It was likely at one of his first ‘shows’ at a club- Arthur remembers the first few clubs he played at and became a regular for. It was a small club in the west side of London, not really shady, but not considered to be part of the ‘best’ areas of the city. He learned about a lot of the music scene in London in that bar, besides the rock and the pop that would overtake the radio stations. With a big West Indies population, especially those descended from Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago, the songs he would play at those clubs were along the lines of dancehall and soca. He thought about threading that area with his music, loving the beat and the rhythm and movements that went along with the genre, yet, he was afraid of experimenting with it further than mixing.

Maybe I should start producing more songs like that, Arthur thought, as he flipped through the photo album. More photos of his younger days were there, with one in a school uniform- the navy blue suit set gave of the air of belonging to a rich private school.

Jean’s past life was still a mystery, even to this day, and Arthur was surprised how little the paparazzi found of Jean over the years. His old friends and family must be tight-knit and on extremely good terms with him; otherwise, there would be a lot more rumours and words about him in the tabloids.

I knew he was a rich kid, Arthur grinned to himself, proud of his assumption, as he continued to snoop. There was not much to note from this photo albums- there were plenty of touristy photos in front of various countries’ landmarks, and he found a lot from a trip Jean took to Japan. He noticed in those ones that he would stand and smile with a young girl, who looked eerily similar to Camille, his manager.

Maybe they knew each other before his career, Arthur thought, reaching the last part of the photo album, dissatisfied with the lack of secrets found. If anything, the album helped humanize Jean slightly- he was just a young boy before he was a world famous DJ after all, and he had to experience the struggle of making a name for himself. Unlike Arthur, who was truly lucky to get picked up and release a hit right away.

But he grew up with wealth- otherwise, how else would he have been able to travel to all those countries at that age? Arthur thought, bitter at knowing that when he was in his teens, he was stuck in London due to money restraints and only started to travel with his career.

He flipped the last page, expecting nothing, but instead found a photo facing into the back of the cover that had half of it ripped off, and a cream paper that was folded up.

Arthur flipped the photo around, the colour of the photo worn down from age. There was a woman in a hospital bed, thin and frail underneath the hospital gown she wore, a scarf wrapped around her head, and tubes connected to her arm and nose. There was a boy, no more than ten years old, that sat on top of the sheets beside her, arms wrapped around her body, smiling at the camera. There was a man standing behind the both, but there was no face to the body- that part of the photo had been ripped out.

Upon looking at the boy, he immediately knew that it was Jean- he had the same features that suited a child, with the real difference is the the rounded face and lack of facial hair.

He looked at the folded paper, and he opened it to see that it was scrolled in green writing, long and loopy. Arthur was hesitant at first about reading the letter, immediately making out the words, but realized he had no idea what was written. It was all in French, and the only thing he could make out through the cursive letter were the first and last parts.

_Francis,_

_Je n’ai pas beaucoup du temps, mais je veux t’écrire cette lettre pour toi._  
_._  
_._  
_._  
_Tu es mon brillant soleil qui éclaire mes journées sombres. Je t’aimerai toujours, mon petit prince._

_Avec amour,_

_Maman_

_Francis?_ Arthur pulled his eyebrows in, looking at the name that was foreign to him. _Who’s Francis?_

He looked back at the photo, at the small boy with golden hair that was Jean, in the woman’s arms, before looking at the letter. Was Francis the man with the missing face? Maybe he was Jean’s elder brother, and Francis was his name.

He heard the faint sound of clicking heels against marble come from the front staircase, and Arthur quickly closed the album and stuffed it into the slot he took it out of. He quickly jumped into the blue antique chair nearby, pretending that he had not just crept around in Jean’s living room.

Arthur looked through the open doorway to the front, expecting to see Camille to be there, but instead, he saw a tall, thin woman with olive skin emerge from the staircase, her long brown hair sashayed down to her waist.

Arthur felt his ears turn red when he saw how quickly she pulled on her black trench coat over her outfit- a very tight fitting bodycon dress, obviously one something would reserve to use in private- and she zipped up her tight high boots.

He could hear more footsteps, and Jean emerged, buckling the belt on his jeans and smoothing down his shirt. Camille must have been right behind him, because Jean turned back quickly before saying something to the girl with a grin on his face. The girl finally turned around to look at Jean, her body facing Arthur, and the Brit could finally see her face.

He recognized her instantly. Everyone in the entertainment industry knew her. It was one of the top models in the world - the Russian model, Veronika Valentina.

When Arthur first heard of her, years ago during his first few years in the popular media, when the caster for his music video was showing him potential models to put in, he personally thought that she had a name of a pornstar, and didn’t think much of her until he saw she was apart of a lineup for Vera Wang’s Spring Bridal Collection that same year.

She had the face to be a model, and the body for it as well, with high cheekbones, a sharp nose and full lips, with doe eyes that fluttered every time she blinked.

Veronika and Jean had quite the history, and Arthur knew all the details from magazines, Mei, and Tino himself (who was surprisingly always in the know when it comes to the dating scene). They met when Veronika was starting out, and only started dating about two years ago, a few months after his breakup with his other girlfriend, a model named Linh Pham.

Arthur had always liked Linh as a person, with her calming, yet assertive nature, and they maintained a good professional relationship. Veronika, on the other hand, he did not like - he found her to haughty ever since fame struck her, and more demanding in an uncomfortable way.

He never understood what Jean saw in her, and he never understood their relationship. They were on and off, and last he heard they were off again a month ago.

I guess they’re back together, Arthur narrowed his eyes as Jean planted a kiss on her lips, and he knew they must have been banging it out before he got here, much to his disgust and want to denial. Jean opened the door, allowing the model to leave, blowing another kiss in her direction, before striding towards the living room where Arthur was. At the same moment, Mei finally came back from the washroom, and sat comfortably on the other side of the sofa, confused when she saw Arthur’s disgusted face.

“What’s up?” Mei asked, and Arthur waved her question off with a small ‘ugh’, gesturing towards the open doorway.

“Welcome to my home!” Jean said brightly, opening up his arms but Arthur stayed planted in the chair. When Jean noticed Arthur disgruntled look, he continued warmly to Mei, “Can I get you anything, ma belle? Coffee? Tea? I insist on you having something warm to drink- it’s cold outside, and I know you’ve been waiting for me for a bit.”

Mei was going to say no, Arthur could see it, but she ended up smiling sheepishly at Jean’s warm smile and sweet tone, and replied, “Coffee would be good. Thank you.”

“Anything for you. And for you, mon cheri?” Jean asked Arthur, a snarky smile on his face when he saw Arthur’s eyebrows deepen at the pet name.

“Don’t call me that,” Arthur snapped. “I’m not your bloody sweetheart.”

“Tea it is, then,” Jean hummed, and he was about to turn to head towards the kitchen, but Camille raised her hand to stop him, nodding towards the couch and he begrudgingly stayed as she left to bring the tea and coffee for their guests.

Jean sat on the other end of the couch, close to Arthur who crossed his arms, not ready for the conversation they were going to have. He couldn’t help but look at Jean, and for a moment, he remembered the videos from that night. How Arthur was so close to Jean, his arm around his shoulder, leaning close to his face. Near his face. His fucking face that was still fucking handsome, despite the fact the his beird had not been shaven yet and his undereyes still dark and weary from having woken up so late.

Near his mouth. That still looked so soft, so welcoming, and so kissable.

Arthur felts a few sensations well in his stomach- first a fluttering sensation, a sensation where his heart was beating faster the longer he looked at Jean. And another sensation, nasty sensation deep below, a sensation he had experienced before. The feeling dwelled, and became especially intense when he recalled Veronika Valentina’s face, and her lips kissing Jean’s.

Was this sensation simply disgust for Jean and seeing him make out with someone? Yes, Arthur was sure the feeling he was feeling was definitely disgust. It’s definitely not the J-word. Why would he experience that feeling for Jean, of all people?

After Camille brought their cups along with a plate of small tarts, She took a seat across opposite to Jean, to make sure they both could look at her. Mei remained seated in a chair near Camille, waiting for her to start as she took small sips from her coffee.

“I assume that we all understand the situation you two have made for yourselves,” Camille started, pushing her glasses up the bridge of her nose. “That you claimed to be collaborating on an album?”

“Did I really say that, though?” Jean asked lightly, fake wonder in his words. “If I remember correctly Arthur was the one who claimed it.”

“You’re the one who agreed to it, so we only have ourselves to blame,” Arthur replied courtly before Camille could say something.

“Hmm yes, I did. I also agreed to you calling me sexy,” Jean said with a cheeky grin, flipping a strand over his shoulder haughtily.

“Are you still on about that?” Arthur asked quickly, his heart skipping a beat when he remembered his words that night, ready to argue with Jean, when Mei interjected loudly.

“No fighting!” Mei exclaimed, jumping up to her feet, ready to hold Arthur down if necessary. Arthur rolled his eyes and looked away, rationality returning to his head. “For once, please, just behave like actual adults! This situation is serious! It could help define your careers for the rest of your life!”

Both looked at each for a moment, glaring in silence, before the tension in the air started to dissipate.

“So? Why are we here?” Jean asked Camille calmly, glancing between Mei and Arthur. Camille must not have brought up a prospective album with Jean, and decided to confront him about it with Arthur being there.

Camille glanced over to Arthur, looking to see his reaction, before replying, “I have spoken to Mei about whether we should consider pursuing an album. Arthur says he’s interested in actually collaborating with you.”

“What?” Jean asked, surprise in his tone, sitting up slightly as he looked over at Arthur, who refused to look his way. “You were serious about it?”

Arthur cleared his throat, trying to figure out what to say. He almost stubbled on his words when his eyes locked Jean’s, but he had to have some sort of control over their situation, “Look, I don’t know what I was thinking because I was piss drunk. But I thought about it after returning to London, and I actually think it’s a good idea if we did this album.”

Something flickered in Jean’s eyes- a spark of interest, perhaps-, and Arthur felt himself being pulled in. There was something soft about how he looked at him, and he couldn’t put his finger on what exactly Jean was thinking.

Then something seemed to click in Jean, and he raised an eyebrow, eyes glaring, “After saying all that stuff about my music, you actually want to work with me on an album?”

“Fine, you’re decent,” Arthur mumbled, trying hard not to sound sarcastic. When Jean still held his glare, Arthur took a deep breathe, attempting to sound as professional as he could possibly be around Jean, “Think about it. Matthias is right- if we want to continue to be relevant, besides being known for our rivalry, collaborating would reserve the top two spots for ourselves. People would recognize our work and talent over all those fights, and put people like Lars Jansen in their place.”

“Basically, we will be putting our rivalry on hold?” Jean asked, intrigued, and a knowing grin grew on his face. “If I remember the numbers of wins correctly, we’re currently tied. Say that we do this little album and it helps us get to the top- what would happen if I end up winning?”

Competitive is a defining trait of Arthur- especially when it was against Jean. The implication was there- this may be their last time trying to be on the top and leaving their mark on the industry. This would lead to the close of their rivalry- why would Arthur continue to fight against Jean if this would be his last major project to one up the Frenchman? He leaned in slightly, smirking, “What do you want from me if you win the title this year?”

Jean pulled his eyebrows in, a hand on his chin as he pondered on Arthur’s question for a moment. “I want you...to finally admit that I am the better producer between the two of us.”

A small request, one that people would probably think isn’t a big deal. But for Arthur, that would be the most embarrassing and shameful thing to say- even if he had to admit that Jean deserved credit as a producer after all these years, Jean wasn’t nearly as talented as the Brit.

Arthur grit his teeth, the need to cuss Jean off overwhelming him. He glanced over to Mei, who was patiently waiting for the two to finish their conversation. She raised an eyebrow, a flicker in her eyes as she waited for Arthur’s response, looking like a mother carefully watching her son, waiting to see if he would try to say anything bad in front of her.

“Fine,” Arthur replied. “And if I win, then you should say the same about me. That I’m the best producer, and that you cannot compare to the my musical talents.”

Jean smiled, amusement written all over his face, and he replied, “It’s a deal, mon petit prince.”

“Maybe you two should be near each other,” Mei piped up before Arthur could reply to Jean. “Do you have any other places you two could live near?”

“Los Angeles?” Arthur questioned, and Jean nodded with a hum.

“Or maybe you should just live with me here in Paris,” Jean winked, his voice sultry and flirty. “We could be roommates. Don’t worry, I’ll take good care of you, cher.”

“Definitely not,” Arthur snapped, but the tone of Jean’s voice got to him, and he felt heat riseat the nap of his neck to his cheeks. “If we were to live together-which we are definitely not going to do -it would be in London.”

“We’re not asking you two to live together, but to find a city or two where you two will be able to live in for the duration the album,” Camille interrupted calmly, not wanting to waste anymore time. “If you want to release it by next summer, then you two would have to start immediately. I assume Los Angeles is where you two will be stay from now on mainly?”

Arthur and Jean looked at each other for a moment, as if mentally agreeing, before Arthur nodded.

“It’s official then,” Mei replied happily, flashing a sweet smile, as she pulled up her bag and started to shuffle through it. “We will start with the contract immediately and get it over with. Then you two will be able to officially announce that you’re working on an album. Shall we get started?”


	5. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Things are almost getting to the meat of the story! Hoorah! Exams were hell, but your girl survived! Thank you guys for the comments as well as continuing to read this story! I hope you guys are enjoying the holidays, and I hope this chapter turned out good! <3
> 
> Characters:  
> R.J. Smith - Australia  
> Natalya Arlovskaya - Belarus  
> Sadik Adnan - Turkey  
> Pierre - OC

"Did you really need me to help you bring your shit to your own house? Don't you already have clothes there?"

"And here I thought you wanted to hang out with after we haven't seen each other in months."

"Of course I do," the man huffed, pulling a long strand of brown hair away from his face. "After all, who doesn't love an impromptu visit to Los Angeles?"

"Would you have rather stayed in London?" Arthur replied, humoring the man, and he grinned.

"No way- I would rather spend an entire day with you than experiencing that rainstorm that's going to hit the city," he replied, green eyes smiling. "If anything, I would rather return home to Lesbon. Why didn't you two just stay in Europe for your album?"

"First of all, João, there is no way in hell I'll live in any facinity with that man," Arthur said, taking a sip from his glass.

"Just buy a flat in Paris then," João pulled in his eyebrows, quircking his head in confusion. "Nobody saidd you two had to live together."

"If I'm never going to live in Paris, what's the point in wasting money and getting a flat?"

"It's not like you don't have the money," João rolled his eyes, picking up his wine glass, turning it so the liquid could swirl. "London's going to be lonely without you. Now that I'm done touring, I thought we could hit up some parties."

"Well, you can stay with me in Los Angeles and we can party there," Arthur replied, and João took a long sip from the wine. "Don't drink that too quickly- I don't want to babysit you if you get too drunk."

"Mei is here, so she can help me out," João replied, before looking over Arthur and waving slightly. "You'll take care of me if I get too drunk before we land, right?"

"Yeah, and you'll need to pay me for my services," Mei replied from where she sat, not missing a beat, and not bothering looking up from her laptop she had on her lap.

After the meeting in Paris, Mei and Camille got to work, with Jean and Arthur releasing a simple statement via Twitter to let their followers know, the hype remaining around this sudden collaboration between these two untimely rivals. Arthur had to take a good 5 minutes to decide what to say, and after typing and deleting the words many times, he finally tweeted,

_Looks like the secret is out! **@JÉpine** and I will be releasing an album together, and we're actually working on a song right now! Stay tuned for more details!_

**\- @KING_A**

The falsity behind Arthur's excitement in his tweet was only noticed by Lukas and Matthias, both immediately messaging him to ask him about this so called single and when they were going to release it. Arthur avoided writing anything specific, sparingly saying that this entire ordeal between himself and Jean was still in the works, and that Arthur would be in Los Angeles for a bit.

João, on the other hand, immediately called Arthur, cackling over the line as he asked Arthur if the tweet was legit. It has been a while since Arthur has talked to the Portuguese singer- João had been away for two months touring Europe for his new album he had released earlier that year, and only just returned to his house in London- and Arthur talked about what had happened during the meeting (minus the letter and Arthur found while snooping around) and their living situation. Eventually during their conversation, Arthur thought it would be good to bring João along to Los Angeles for a bit to hang out and give him a break from work.

Besides, if Jean and Arthur were going to be working on a single immediately, João would be the perfect singer to be featured. Him finishing his Europe tour and being on break was the perfect coincidence Arthur needed- he will definitely have an upper hand in the production of the single.

They were currently on a plane to Los Angeles from London, with Mei accompanying them to keep an eye on Arthur for a bit, to ensure he doesn't get himself in anymore shit. Yao managed to get an interview with none other than Eduard with _Weekly Entertainment_ before they left, and quickly with other magazines as well.

Yao trained him and made sure he was completely prepared for the questions, but that was only for magazine interviews. His next interview will likely be at a popular radio show by one of Hollywood's famous reporters, the Australian named R.J. Smith. R.J. wasn't as bad as other entertainment reporters, being much more carefree and not being as calculative as Eduard but he is still apart of the entertainment industry- who knows what he might have up his sleeves.

"I still don't understand why you two are collaborating," João commented, taking the bottle of wine sitting on a short cart and tilting it into his glass, the light yellow liquid pouring out. "Sure, Lars Jansen said you guys were old and you aren't as popular as you were when you started, but that happens to everyone. Why collaborate with the guy you claim to hate with all your guts?"

"That kid should know his place," Arthur grumbled, taking a long sip. He then grin, thinking of something funny, and decided to say out loud, "What, are you considering collaborating with him anytime soon?"

There was a sudden silence between them, the sound of keyboards clicking in the background.

"Actually," João said, after a long pause. "His management actually contacted us recently. He says that he wanted to collaborate on a single."

"You're not going to accept it, right?" Arthur replied, taken aback from the vagueness in his friend's voice. João always collaborated with Arthur - heck, he actually refused a collaboration with Jean a long time before, when Arthur and Jean's rivalry was at one of their peaks. He's even on the Associated Acts list on Arthur's Wikipedia page, and you have to make a lot of music together to be on that list!

"Hey, I don't have anything personal against him," João said defensively. "This beef is between you, Jean, and Lars. Besides, I have nothing else to do, and I actually like his songs! It might be actually fun."

"Sellout," Arthur claimed, not truly meaning it, but he was a bit surprised that João was going to be collaborating with a newbie like Lars. The Portuguese man is now considered a veteran singer, being in the industry as long as Arthur- why and how did he manage to snag a direct contract with a the new, rising producer? "So you're not going to work on a single with me?"

"Not yet," João sighed. "Not now, anyway. Get Mei to check with my manager about it. I have to be in Amsterdam next week to meet with Lars and settle a contract. Also, I have my North American tour starting in March until April, so I only really have January to February off."

They're on first name basis, Arthur noted, clicking his tongue. "So, how long do you want to stay with me in Los Angeles?"

"I don't know," João shrugged. "When's Jean landing?"

"He already landed a day ago," Arthur replied, knowing this from watching his social media stories from him landing in the Los Angeles International Airport, and not directly, despite them actually exchanging numbers to keep in touch. It would have nice to know where he was at times, considering that Arthur would be around him for the next 8 months for work. If they can't even communicate with each other, how are they going to coordinate their schedules around each other?

"Do you have anything else to tell me?" Arthur continued, glaring at João. "Anything else you're hiding? Any more surprises?"

"I wasn't trying to hide the Lars thing. I'm a singer- I'm allowed to collaborate with whatever producer I want to,unlike you," João waved off the Brit's subtle jab. He paused, thinking for a moment, before continuing, "This isn't really a surprise, but guess who I ran into while in Rome?"

Arthur blinked, unsure how to answer. "Uh...did you run into Tino and them? I know they were in Italy while you were there."

"No, but they were at the club we were in," João grinned. "I saw your pet. Or, your ex-pet."

Arthur felt an overwhelming feeling of embarrassment at João's loose use of 'pet', and an image popped up in his head, an image of a certain man that he so desperately wanted to delete from his memories.

"How is he?” Arthur asked, keeping his tone even, though internally, he wanted to weep.

“Pierre is great,” João smirked mockingly. “He’s getting a gig at Milan Fashion Week and everything is Gucci. Literally- I think he has a partnership with Gucci, he was wearing a belt and everything.”

“That’s great,” Arthur lied, trying his best to be chipper, forcing a smile.

“What’s with the face, Artie?” João asked with mock sympathy, the mischievous twinkle in his eyes. “Don’t tell me you still have a thing for him?”

“No, of course not,” Arthur dropped the light voice and grumbled the words out, taking a sip from the glass. “Why’d you have to bring him up?”

“Why not? It’s been over half a year since you two broke up,” João said. “I thought you wouldn’t care and get over him.”

“I am over him,” Arthur quipped, the frown on his face becoming much more prominent. “Doesn’t mean I’m not hurt over what happened.”

Ah, Pierre. He was everything Arthur could dream of in a man. Absolutely handsome, with pretty brown eyes and a million dollar smile that made Arthur feel warm inside.

They had met at a photoshoot that Arthur was doing for an issue of the _Harper’s Bazaar_ a year ago. They immediately hit it off, and Arthur was unsure of how Pierre knew he was interested in him, but they somehow ended up having a relationship soon after their encounter.

They weren’t really serious, they were on casual terms, but Arthur had accidentally let himself catch feelings for the young man, despite knowing that at that point of his career, he couldn’t let the public know about his sexuality, much less their relationship.

Pierre was also scared of anyone finding out, being new to the entertainment industry at the time. A young man from the Ivory Coast, Pierre was a model who already had to battle his way through the modelling industry, his Afro features being seen as undesirable for many fashion designers that are mostly Eurocentric when it came to looks- if any knew the fact that he is gay, then that would be the end of his career and family life, the latter being unfortunately incredibly homophobic.

They ended up cutting their little thing that was going on, for the sake of both their careers, and although it wasn’t that long, as João had said, Arthur still mulls of what could have happened between them if they continued to see each other. Maybe it could have been serious- Pierre was a soft soul, a romantic at heart, and he was quite gentle towards Arthur, treating him with respect and dignity that his past lovers did not offer him.

The idea of settling down has been on the young Brit’s mind, ever since he started to notice how his hair was starting to grey out and the need to sleep constantly. Maybe it came with his age - he was, after all, in his 30s and usually people would get married and have a family. A lot of people in entertainment industries start quite young- even Tino has a kid with an ex of his when he was in his late 20s, a charming young lad named Peter, who still lives with him in Stockholm where the group mostly stay on their off seasons.

“I’m surprised you ever fell for a guy like Pierre,” João continued, taking a long sip from the glass, an eyebrow raised.

Shady bitch, Arthur thought, the way João worded his sentence making him feel like it was a low jab at him, as he replied, “What’s wrong with falling for Pierre?”

“Well, for one, he’s French,” João started, before Arthur intercepted quickly.

“He’s from the Ivory Coast.”

“Okay, but he speaks French and has a very French-esque accent and attitude,” João replied just as quickly. “And I thought you hated anything French related. Including men.”

“Like I said, he’s not France French, he’s Ivorian,” Arthur replied, and João gave him a ‘mhm’. He rolled his eyes, as he continued, “I only hate when Jean speaks French and is spreading his Frenchiness everywhere.”

“Oh, and another thing,” João continued. “He’s really flirty too. Like, flirty flirty. Maybe not intentionally, but I think he was hitting on Matthias for most of the night.”

“And he had you on such a short leash. You'd take a plane to see him when he says he misses you and wants to see you, if he says something slightly off, you lament over it for days…”

“I know what you’re going to say, and I don’t want you to say it,” Arthur grumbled, his friend’s implications finally making sense, and João grinned wildly at the expression of dismay Arthur held on his face.

“I’m just noticing that you have a type,” João replied, almost coming out as a laugh of mockery. He then dropped to a slight whisper, despite Mei having inserted headphones at that point, “And Jean fits the bill perfectly.”

“Jean is a perv who needs to stick his dick in something every hour.”

“You’re just saying that because he sleeps around casually like every other guy in this industry,” João said with a shrug, swirling his glass. “Who’s to say Pierre doesn’t sleep around either? I think you let your rivalry from seeing that Jean is an okay guy, and probably the least problematic DJ out there.”

“If you think he’s an okay guy, maybe you should date him?” Arthur finally snapped back, and João let out a laugh, pissing Arthur to no end.

“Aw Artie, it’s not good to be in denial,” João replied between chuckles, and Arthur grunted in disgust, looking away towards the window beside him, a sign that this conversation had just ended and he didn’t want to hear anything more about Jean Épine.

Jean? Similar to sweet Pierre?

Has João gone absolutely mad?

Arthur won’t lie- he knew Jean was a good looking man, and maybe if he didn’t know Jean at all, he would consider sleeping with him. But Arthur knew Jean, and his little flings he's had here and there - heck João heard all the gossip and tales of Jean from Arthur, but how could he still compare Arthur’s ex, who was was kind and gentle soul to a narcissistic and pretentious prick like Jean?

...Okay, maybe those words were too harsh to describe him, but pretentious is pretty close. Jean thinks so highly of himself, from the way he walks to the way he looks at Arthur, that he could swear that he was sneering at Arthur and his inherent London flair.

Arthur glanced out the window, the clouds passed by in random patterns, but his mind remained distracted- nay, disturbed. He played back Jean’s face from the last time they met- and all it brought back was that godforsaken video where he was hanging off of Jean like a flirt, body all over him.

Curse that video. Curse the man who made it, Matthias. Matthias can barely walk a straight line while drunk, but he manages to take good videos while in a crowded party. Truly, this entire situation was his fault! If it weren’t for the Dane, Arthur wouldn’t be on this plane and going to Los Angeles for work, and instead he could have taken a nice trip to someplace like the Bora Bora.

 _I mean, maybe they are similar_ , Arthur thought, upon pondering about it even more. Pierre was a flirt, and he does know how to push Arthur's buttons, but at least he knew when to stop. Unlike Jean, who just keeps going and going, on and on...though Arthur couldn't deny that he doesn't stop either.

Arthur felt at ease over seeing land after mostly seeing white clouds for the past hours. The sparse land and stretch of beige soon turned into houses, before the familiar tall buildings and white beaches of Los Angeles appeared.

“Please fasten your seatbelts. We will be landing in Los Angeles shortly,” the pilot signalled over the intercom, and the flight attendant came to tuck the glasses and bottles safely elsewhere, as Arthur obeyed the command and quickly buckled in.

 _Calm down and try not to murder Jean,_ Arthur thought as he took a deep breathe, as the plane slowly descended through the clouds, towards the airport terminal.

* * *

“Hey João! What brings you to LA?” A paparazzi exclaimed from the sides, being blocked by a bodyguard from coming any closer, as Arthur and João quickly walked through the airport with a cart of luggage alongside Mei towards the exit, their cab waiting outside. Consecutive bright flashes surrounded them, though not as much as it would be on the red carpet, it was enough to piss Arthur off.

João had dressed for the occasion, actually wearing jeans and a dark blazer on top of a shirt, bedazzled with a silver necklace and bracelets on his wrist, while Arthur looked less than desirable in an oversized sweatshirt.

Arthur wasn’t sure whether it was dumb luck that they caught them at the airport or somehow they figured it out by looking at Joao’s social media stories and updated, but he couldn’t complain out loud. At the very least, the attention was concentrated on Joao, most of the paps asking him to glance their way.

“Just visiting with this one,” João replied with a smile, always pleasant towards anybody really, while Arthur kept his sunglasses on, not wanting to interact with the paparazzi in any way.

“Are you two making a new song?” The paparazzi continued, not ready to let it go as he followed, others gravitating forward as well.

“Hmm,” João hummed, not saying anything else as they quickened their pace, and out the swinging doors they went, making a beeline to the van they hired, a black van with black, tinted window. Mei immediately hopped forward, heels clicking on concreted, to open the door for the two to go inside.

Ducking into the car, they both settled in while the trunk of van opened immediately, their luggage loaded in without hesitation, cameras still sticking along the window. Mei snuck in, seated at the front of the car with the driver, and the moment the trunk shut clean, Mei cued for them to leave with a quick gesture.

After getting through LA traffic, they managed to slither along the path towards Arthur’s flat, a large yet reclusive place where most of the celebrities and artists would stay if they didn’t stay in Los Angeles for too long. Arthur tended to avoid staying in Los Angeles, with it’s sweltering hot summers and lack of air circulation, but he appreciates the populous city, with its rich and diverse culture, and beaches with tall palm trees. The latter were a beautiful sight, especially during sunset, where the sky would be painted in warm pinks and purples, shimmering over the waters. It wasn’t enough to keep him there for too long, however- most of his friends still lived in Europe, so why bother?

“Don’t forget that you have an interview with RJ the day after tomorrow,” Mei reminded Arthur after they had managed to bring everything in one elevator trip, João being a good friend and actually helping lug everything through the door along with. They stood in the small gallery that welcomed the visitors at the front door, the decor slightly unfamiliar to Arthur, who hadn’t been here for a few months. “I’ll send you the time when I get to my flat.”

“So soon?” Arthur asked as he leaned against the wall, facing the entrance of the living room. He could hear João audibly collapsed on his semi-circular couch with a sigh of relief, the pique cover squishing in. “We haven’t even started thinking of an idea for the album, much less a song.”

“Well, you’re going to have to think of something,” Mei replied, not looking up from her phone as she continued to type, her pink gel nails tapping on the screen with everything letter. “Because I also need to start negotiating with the label here about releasing your songs. We want it to coincide the release of the first song on the same date. Can you meet up with Jean today and tell me by tomorrow evening an approximate date?”

“I’ll try,” Arthur groaned, his body becoming heavy and weary. Jet lag has caught up with him, and he is most definitely not pleased with how the sun shone the way it did through the windows. He hadn’t slept much to begin with, and it would be night in London - whereas, it is the high afternoon here in Los Angeles.

“I managed to get ahold of Natalya,” Mei continued, finally looking up, and Arthur could she the edges of her eyes becoming red with sleep. Yet, she carried on with a tone of command, “She’ll come by tomorrow night to help you choose your outfit.”

“Perfect,” Arthur rolled his eyes. “I’ll be sure to hide my knives.”

“She’s doing us a favour,” Mei tutted, crossing her arms, eyes squinting at Arthur’s disgruntled comment.

Natalya Braginsky - or now called Natalya Arlovskaya - is a young up and coming designer from London as well. Little known fact is that she is, indeed, the younger sister of the heir of Braginsky Entertainment. Not that really helped her; she just was able to get the money necessary to study fashion without worries of debt. When Arthur had first signed onto the label, she had left to Paris for her studies, only starting her brand now after working for fashion designers and crafting her skills. She had dressed him once for a gala he was invited to, and he felt absolutely spectacular in the outfit - it was just that she could have a scary presence that makes Arthur worry she might slit his throat somehow. And she did say something along the line of that, if he kept moving as she was pinning some fabrics; the way her face was straight laced and serious did not help him think it was anything but a joke.

Mei continued, “You know she’s working overtime on her collection for the upcoming New York Fashion Week.”

“And I’m very proud of her,” Arthur sighed. Truly, he was. Her pieces were aesthetically pleasing to the eyes- she had a knack for weaving absolutely vibrant colours together, integrating slavic patterns without making the outfit look outdated. Despite being a trust fund kid, she was the few who were talented and hardworking, even going as far to change her last name to her mother’s maiden name in order to distance herself from her family name. “Really, I am. I’m just so tired.”

“Take a nap, then,” Mei replied, matter-of-factly. “And get back to me tomorrow. Just remember that I’m leaving for London at the end of this week, but I should be back by the end of the month. Also, Yao already contacted Sadik - he’ll also come by tomorrow to help you get ready for tomorrow.”

“This is so much,” Arthur moaned, pushing his weight along the wall as Mei patted his shoulder gently. “And Jean didn’t even get back to me yet. I don’t even know where he is.”

“Don’t worry too much. Take a shower and go take a nap,” Mei said softly, slightly guiding him towards the living room, attached to his personal suite. She gestured at Joao, who had seemingly fallen asleep, quiet snores escaping from his mouth, a smile playing on her lips. “See? Joao’s got the right idea.”

“...How can you be this resilient, Mei?” Arthur asked, holding a hand over hers that was still on his arm, looking at her tired face for a moment. She couldn’t have slept much either - the concealer she had worn at the beginning of their voyage was beginning to wipe away, revealing light dark circles.

“It’s my job to be,” Mei laughed, as she let go of him, and started to walk towards the front of the door. “Take it easy for a bit, then make sure you get back to work. Also, make sure that Joao doesn’t drool over your couch.”

“Will do,” Arthur chuckled, and he after hearing the click of the front door automatically locking with a beep, and he went towards his room, passing Joao along the way. The living room was as plain and cozy as he could get- embroidered pillows were all over the dark grey couch, along with a plush rug underneath, covering most of the floor to the wall that held the hanging TV. It wasn’t much of a place to host parties - which is why he doesn’t allow many people here. He placed his keys on top of the clear table in front of the couch, before casually taking off his sweatshirt as he walked to his suite, satisfied as he dropped it on the chair that stood nearby the entrance.

Shower, was all he could think about, as he disrobed along the way, grabbing a towel from his closet before entering the bathroom that was attached to his room. As he turned on the tab and stood idly underneath the spout as water came pouring out over his hair and skin, he made a quick checklist of things to do.

 _First, take a two hour nap,_ Arthur thought, lathering the fresh soap bar in his hands. _Second, make sure to wake up Joao and take him with you to see Jean._

 _Should I try calling him now?_ Arthur pondered for a moment, running the suds over his arm. _No, I’ll call him later. He should be awake anyways - it’s not like he would mind holding off work for another two hours._

With that, Arthur continued showering, before slithering back into the bed, freshly made for his arrival. The moment he landed on the bed, he knocked out, his mind going black.

* * *

 _This is it_ , Arthur thought, as he pulled up his car up towards the mansion that stood behind the tall white, through the metallic black gates, halting before reaching an area in front of the porch where a few cars sat. _No going back._

“Call him before we get out,” Joao mumbled in the passenger seat, sipping on his large cup of iced frappuccino he forced Arthur to buy en route, his sunglasses permanently on his face. Joao had opted to remain stylish as per usual, trading his shirt to for a tucked in faded green shirt into his dark jeans, wearing brown leather shoes to match the ensemble.

Arthur had to put in the extra effort to not look like a mess, especially considering Jean would have plenty to say about his style choice. One could never go wrong with a denim jacket over a t-shirt; just as long as he didn’t wear a denim pants with it, reminiscent of Justin Timberlake’s denim tuxedo in 2001.

“He didn’t answer when we left,” Arthur said. “What makes you think he’d answer now?”

“Just try, Artie,” Joao replied, pushing up his sunglasses to show a pair of annoyed green eyes.

With a huff, Arthur pulled out the phone he had in his pocket, quickly scrolling through the contacts before ringing up Jean.

 _Drrrrrt. Drrrrrt. Drrrrrrt. Drrrrrt._ Arthur glanced around the estate a bit, looking at the wide windows along the main floor, all covered by silk white curtains. As the phone continued to ring, he noticed that upon the window that was closest to the door, the curtain suddenly swayed slightly, as if having been brushed over slightly.

“The number you have dialed-” Arthur cut off the phone quickly when he heard the automated voice, and quickly started to open the door to get out.

“What, he didn’t pick up?” Joao asked as he did the same, hesitating at Arthur sudden jumping out of the door.

“Yep,” Arthur said, as he quickly locked the car with a click of his button, and started to make his way up the stairs.

“What if he’s not home?” Joao asked, hastily making his way up the stairs right behind Arthur, trying not to be aggressive so that his drink could spill over.

“Oh, he’s home,” Arthur replied, standing in front of the door, searching the sides for the doorbell...and there it was. He quickly pressed the button, Joao standing by, tucking in his sunglasses into his shirt, waiting for Arthur to continue.

There was silence for a moment, before Arthur pressed the button again, holding it for a bit longer.

“How do you know he’s home?’ Joao spoked up after a long sip.

“Just wait.” Arthur grunted, and they heard the knob of the front door twist slowly, before opening with a slight creek.

An attractive yet frazzled young man stood in the doorway, his black hair tufted and messy, and immediately Arthur could smell alcohol from his body. Arthur recognized him immediately- it was Justin Choi, an up and coming actor that was in a recently released action movie, and was supposed to be in a few more this year as well. He was well acquainted with Jean, though, having been casted in his music video when Jean first started, and Arthur had seen him before at Jean’s after party for a few award shows before. Which likely means…

“Hey, Justin, is Jean inside?” Arthur spoke up, and the actor fumbled aside slightly as he tried to collect his words, frowning as if in pain.

“Uhhh,” he started, his voice husked, and Arthur allowed himself to enter without a second thought. “Yeah, he should be.”

“Perfect,” Arthur said, ushering Joao to enter. “Is there anyone else in the house?”

“Everyone left,” Justin responded, slightly confused with Arthur’s sudden appearance, but didn’t press on, looking like the last thing he wanted to do was talk. “I was just heading out right now.”

“Mhm, yes, well, get home safe,” Arthur replied, dismissing him, which Justin took graciously as he practically stumbled out the door, towards the stairs to head for his car.

“He is so hot in person,” João whispered, and Arthur rolled his eyes, despite wanting to agree with the Portuguese for once. “Do you think he’d be mad for just walking into his house?”

“Who, Jean?” Arthur scoffed, trying to rack his brain. Where does Jean usually host his parties? This house is relatively big, with a few sections and floors. He walked further into the house, passing the main living room towards a gallery. Art pieces decorated the wall, bright and vibrant and Arthur continued to say, “I doubt he’d be sober enough to care.”

João chuckled, and they passed through a hollowed entrance, a large room with a kitchen and another living room space, much bigger than the first. There were tall glass walls along one side, a large swimming pool peeking through, and plastic cups nearly littered everywhere. Various size bottles sat on the kitchen counter, some half empty and other clear, and a few on a low table in the living room. The outside looked worse than it did inside - there were more cups near the pool that overlooked the hill the house stood on. God knows why there were people using the pool this late into the season.

Arthur glanced around, and immediately noticed the long blond threads of his now co-producers hair, splayed on top of the couch. One leg was on the couch, threatening to topple over along with the rest of his body into the table that stood in the middle. Thank god he was clothed, though- Arthur wouldn’t know how to react if he weren’t.

“This fucker,” Arthur mumbled as he immediately walked over a few cups on the ground, Joao coming along, looking around as if it was his first time in this mansion.

“We should’ve came yesterday,” João sighed. “We could’ve went to this party.”

“That’s the last thing I want to do right now,” Arthur said as he went around the table, towards where Jean’s head laid on the couch, getting down on a knee to his level. He placed a hand on Jean’s shoulder, budging it slightly.

“Jean,” Arthur said in an even tone, loud enough for the Frenchman to be able to hear. No response nor movement. Arthur brushed his hair away, from his face, and tried again. “Jean, get up.”

Once again, no response.

“You should kiss him,” João said. “He might wake up- that’s how they got Sleeping Beauty to wake up.”

Arthur ignored João’s comment, grumbling, “João, get me a glass of water.”

An impish grin grew on João’s face, knowing what would happen, and immediately got up.

“I can’t believe this is what you were doing instead of telling me you were here,” Arthur said to Jean, as he started to aggressively shake his shoulders. “Fucking wake up! I didn’t come all the way here to watch you sleep.”

“Hmmm.” A low moan emitted from Francis throat, as he turned around, face looking up. His eyes remained closed, and he stopped moving.

“Jean,” Arthur repeated, and Joao walked beside him, handing him a clear glass of water.

“You’re going to dump the whole thing on him?” João asked, ready with phone, likely to record for his social media.

“Don’t record,” Arthur warned. “Mei told me not to reveal anything behind the scene.”

“This isn’t really behind the scene,” João pouted, but waited patiently for Arthur to continue.

“If you don’t wake up Jean, I’ll pour water on you head,” Arthur warned, looking at Jean, shaking him firmly. Looking at him now, Arthur felt at actual peace. His face was easier to look at now than when he’s awake - he looked less annoying, a sort of soft halo effect washing over him.

“Arrête,” Jean mumbled, pushing Arthur hand away, eyes remaining close. Arthur gritted his teeth, and placed a few fingers into the cup. He quickly flicked water over his face, making Jean stirr suddenly, and finally he opened his eyes, a frown on his face.

“Pute,” Jean grumbled, glancing over at Arthur, who stood by. “What…”

“Get up. It’s almost evening,” Arthur said, nay, demanded, standing up as Jean, watching him as he slowly sat himself up on his arms.

“Fuck,” Jean repeated, rubbing his eyes. He then looked at Arthur, then João, before saying, “How’d you get into my house?”

“Justin Choi was just leaving your little party,” Arthur replied, bitterness in his words. Jean had a small smirk on his face from his words, and nodded along.

“Damn, and I’ve been asleep until 4?” Jean asked, checking the time on his wristwatch, a luxurious silver Cartier. “You guys should’ve came earlier. It was a good party.”

João was about to agree, but immediately Arthur cut through. His attitude was pissing him off, the way he casually laughed things off. Arthur had been waiting for Jean to get back to him, and he was sure he was ignoring him and instead decided to throw a bash just for the hell of it despite the dilemma they found themselves in.

“I can’t believe you have the audacity of throwing a party while we’re clearly in the middle of figuring out what we have to do for this project!” Arthur exclaimed, arms crossed. “You do know we’re on a bit of a tight schedule, yeah? Didn’t Camille already tell you this? That the label wants to know when we’re planning on releasing the first song by tomorrow.”

“Yeah,” Jean slightly slurred. “But we have time, petit prince. It’s only until tomorrow, and we could figure out something right now.”

“What, while you’re hungover?” Arthur mocked, rolling his eyes, and Jean laughed at his words.

“I’m not like you when I’ve drunk a few shots,” he replied, his words airy. He stood up, balancing himself before he could topple over. “I actually know how to handle my alcohol.”

“You’re saying you can make a beat right now?” Arthur challenged, eyebrows raised.

Jean smirked, a cocky smirk, “Maybe a better one then you could.”

“Hey Jean,” João interrupted, knowing that they would have continued to bicker if he didn’t interrupt, grabbing both their attention. “You got anything like coffee? We just had a 12 hour flight, and we could really use the caffeine.”

“Of course,” Jean obliged with a smile, gesturing for them to follow into the kitchen. “You look absolutely lovely today, Joao - you really have a knack for fashion.”

“Oh, you know you’re one of my fashion inspiration,” João chuckle, his friendly nature showing through, smiling easy at Jean. They too didn’t have a bad relationship at all; it was mostly that Arthur would always have João to collaborate with so that Jean wouldn’t swoop him away. And Jean respected that, for the most part.

“You flatter me,” Jean replied, lightly laughing. He opened a cupboard, a coffee maker already against the wall, asking “How do you take your coffee?”

“We can make it ourselves,” Arthur interrupted. “Why don't you wash up and we can get to work?”

“Of course, cher,” Jean hummed after a beat, letting João to choose from the array of caffeine jars, and leaned closer to Arthur, whispering, “Why don't you join me while you're at it?”

The way his voice husked made Arthur feel a sort of way, but he kept his grit.

“Maybe another time, perv,” Arthur scoffed, not pushing him away, letting him pass by. He didn’t have the time in day to tell him off- it was better to let him be.

“Tea bags are in the other cabinet,” Jean continued, and left them be.

“Yeah, you definitely don't want to fuck Jean,” João quipped amusingly when Jean left, stirring the cup with a spoon.

“Fuck off,” Arthur replied, voice inflection at the last bit, as he leaned against the counter, feeling his ears heat up at his words. “Get me an English Breakfast.”

“Yes sire,” João replied in an uppity way. “Would you like some crumpets along with that?”

“You may as well,” Arthur mumbled.

This is going to be a long day.

* * *

 

Curse Jean and his sleek studio he had in a separate building. Curse how comfortable the seats are and how chill the vibe was the moment they all entered the room. Curse the fact that Arthur found himself in his studio to work on a single with his arch nemesis now ally.

“So?” Jean asked as he swiveled towards them on his chair as they sat on opposing sofas. “What do you think?”

A question directed towards Arthur in guise of a general question. The studio was bigger than Arthur would have liked it, wide with various tables and line up of instruments here and there, speakers surrounding the room. There wasn't anything worth noting. The lights were just too dim for his liking, though.

“A studio is a studio,” Arthur replied, leaning into the couch. “What more could I expect.”

“Always one with the compliments,” Jean said, a smirk still on his face.

“Do people come in and record here too?” João asked, gesturing at the microphone stand.

“Usually,” Jean said. “We’ve never worked on a song together, have we João?”

“No, this one keeps me down lock,” João pouted while pointing at Arthur. “He never lets me out of the house. He doesn't want me cheating on him with you.”

“Look, we have to get started on this thing,” Arthur mumbled, taking out his phone. “It's nearly six and we got no idea what direction we're taking this first song, nevermind the album.”

“Ah, my dear friend, do not worry so much,” Jean hummed, rolling closer to Arthur. “Isn't obvious that this album is going to be just like any other album?”

“And what would that be?”

“This album will center around love, of course,” Jean replied leaning back into his chair, his arms wrapping around his body softly. “And not just any kind of love, but passionate love!”

“That's the last thing I want to write about with you,” Arthur dismissed it quickly, not wanting to get into that realm. If anything, something that was more party ish would be better for the both of them- not as crude as Jean would write it, but a good middle ground.

“But Artie, you make songs like that,” João pointed out.

“Yes, but it's not as horny and moppy like how Jean writes it,” Arthur replied. “I pride myself with my romantic innocent way of writing.”

“Would you rather we make a party type song instead?” Jean asked, full attention to what he has to say. “Money, strippers-”

“No- I don't want you getting too excited in front of me,” Arthur scoffed. “But it would be better than that. I just think love is overused-”

“Overused, but everyone loves those songs,” João said with a sigh. “Myself, Taylor Swift, Justin Bieber- we all have one thing in common, and that's writing about relationships and love. And we're still popular.”

“You're not even going to be singing this first track,” Arthur snapped.

“I'm just letting you know all the love songs you wrote with me were always popular,” João replied. “Maybe start with that.”

“A not too chill song?” Arthur asked, and João nodded.

“You've heard our songs before, right Jean?” João asked, and to Arthur's surprise, Jean nodded.

“Yes, I particularly liked _Feel_ the most,” Jean replied, glancing over to Arthur, who glanced away at the mention of that song. “It felt very personal and intense. Like that tense moment before you do something. But it was playful too.”

Arthur was not expecting that response from Jean, much more, he didn't think Jean would care for his music much. Feel was one of the few slower songs that Arthur has ever made, and maybe the most personal he had ever got into a song. He liked things that stir his emotions- but that song was from a particular deeper place that he didn't like to think about much.

When João started to write the song with Arthur, they had gotten quite close. He wanted to write a song that was like a secret, a forbidden secret, being in the emotions of keeping that secret while being playful. It was a love song, a song about pushing the boundaries while hiding it from others.

Arthur grew up around that. He still has to hide that feeling at times. It came from a place of hiding his attraction, his feelings, with this one particular guy he was with when he was younger. They held it close between one another, and it was a fantastic and playful relationship, under the guise of being friends who could not be caught. Arthur had to dig those feelings back up, and it was truly a hit amongst a lot of people- it got him a bigger following as well.

He would usually be a bit flattered- this was a first for him, hearing Jean specifically bring up that song, but there was a meaning behind his words. And the way he worded it made it seem like it felt personal to him too.

Or maybe he was imagining things, and Jean was just trying to get João on his good side.

“Maybe something like that would work,” João said with a shrug. “I don't know, I'm just here for a vacation.”

“Your voice is perfect for that type of song,” Jean hummed, thinking a bit. “I mean, we could make something similar later in the year- only if Arthur is into the idea of the album being focused on l’amour.”

“A relationship, of sorts?” Arthur pressed on. Jean nodded.

“Yes, maybe even the stages of one, if you want there to be a cohesive tale to the album,” Jean replied, moving his knee slightly up and down, waiting for Arthur respond.

Arthur usually held on to a theme, or a story, with his albums, rarely doing a mashup of songs into one, saving it for EPs or standalones. Jean tended not to have direction with his work- he just puts as many as he could onto an album and releases it for any to hear.

Arthur was, needless to say, surprised and hesitant at Jean being this considerate and actually asking him about what he wanted to do. Maybe it was easier to actually work with him than being his colleague.

“I like that,” Arthur said, nodding, finally maintaining eye contact with Jean. “I think it would be better as a tale of romance, since you're interested in that idea.”

The way his intense gaze looked at Arthur confused him, and Arthur couldn't read what Jean was feeling or thinking. Then something clicked suddenly in Jean, as if realising that he had gone silent, and a smile broke on his face. He quickly glanced over to João, “Perfect! That settles it then. João, could you help out with the song writing.”

“Definitely,” João said, glancing over at Arthur with a grin. “Unless Arthur wants me to hide my skills until later.”

“I can’t trust you here,” Arthur rolled his eyes, and Jean immediately scooted towards the table with his laptop, opening himself towards his guests.

“Let's get started, then,” João said, amused with their banter, and started to tap on some buttons.

It was officially the beginning.

Arthur Kirkland a.k.a KING was officially making an album with his archnemesis Jean Épine.

Arthur prayed that he wouldn't regret this. Deep in his heart, he knew he won't.


End file.
